The unexpected victory of Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old state assemblyman, in the Democratic mayoral primary against the former New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, has sent ripples of concern through the moderate Democrats, commercial heads, and Republican ranks. Observing the mayoral race closely, these factions have found a common worry in the prospect of a Mayor Mamdani and his Democratic Socialist ideologies gaining power in Gracie Mansion.
These disparate groups, encompassing Cuomo supporters, reluctant backers, and even independents, are of one mind in their strategy to avoid this potential eventuality. They believe the best course of action is to agglomerate their support behind a single candidate, believed to be Eric Adams by a majority.
A look at the prominent supporters of Adams highlights Jon Catsimatidis, the supermarket kingpin and previous Republican contender for the New York City mayorship. According to Catsimatidis, Adams has a strong backing from the White House and Washington and would be a vigilant force to reduce crime across the city.
When questioned about his stance on the Republican mayoral nominee, Curtis Sliwa, Catsimatidis reverberated his confidence in crime reduction, stating ‘he’ll clean up the crime’. It’s interesting to note that Sliwa was once employed at Catsimatidis’s radio station.
On the other end of the spectrum, Mamdani has proposed to introduce free bus services and childcare, impose a freeze on rents for subsidized apartments, and establish a chain of city-owned supermarkets. Irrespective of these initiatives, his unlikely victory in the mayoral primary has piled the pressure on both his rivals and their backers alike.
Shaping up to be a multifaceted race, there appear to be at least four candidates on the ballot for the upcoming mayoral election. Besides Mamdani who is set to run as a Democratic nominee and a representative of the Working Families Party, the contestants include Eric Adams (on independent lines), Curtis Sliwa (running as a Republican), and Jim Walden, a former United States attorney (as an independent).
Adding an unexpected twist is the fact that Cuomo himself might be in the running, but on a different platform. He is speculated to compete independently, with a platform bearing a fighting promise, ‘Fight and Deliver’.
In terms of numbers, Mamdani clinched over 432,305 votes in the initial round of the Democratic primary. Weighing this tally against the total turnout of approximately 1.1 million in the 2021 mayoral general election, it’s clear he already wields a significant chunk of the electorate’s support.
Mamdani’s secured votes constitute nearly one-third of the possible votes, assuming the turnout remains consistent with last year’s. This equation also assumes that second-choice votes and those loyal to the party line, regardless of the candidate, aren’t taken into account.
Suzanne Miller, president of Empire State Properties, shared her projection in this tense scenario as money starting ‘to pour in for Eric Adams’. A poll by the Manhattan Institute held last week, despite eventually being proven inaccurate, also posited a four-way general election race in the event of Mamdani claiming victory in the primaries.
In the conjectured scenario, Mamdani would triumph with 33 percent vote share, trailed by Adams with 19 percent, Sliwa with 16 percent, and Walden rounding the lower end with 5 percent. An uncommitted 30 percent voters remain the wild card in this race.
Theoretically, a combined effort from Adams and Sliwa, playing to their strengths and their appeal to moderates and Republicans respectively, could overcome Mamdani’s lead. Adams positioned himself as the voice of reason and the herald of law and order during his recent appearance on ‘Fox & Friends’, also labeling Mamdani as a ‘snake oil salesman’.
However, it’s plausible that certain Democrats might hesitate to back Adams due to speculation regarding his possible deal with President Trump to dodge federal charges. Besides, a Democratic Socialist mayor like Mamdani who is reluctant to rebuke the slogan ‘globalize the intifada’ also doesn’t sit well with moderates.
Political figures including Democratic congressman of Long Island, Tom Suozzi, and Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, haven’t hidden their reservations regarding Mamdani either. The eventual decision of the influential New York Democrat in Congress, Laura Gillen, who previously condemned Mamdani as too radical, is also being keenly awaited.
The post Mamdani’s Unexpected Victory: A Jolt for Moderate Democrats appeared first on Real News Now.
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