🔗 Share this article

New Yorkers will discover the identity of their next mayor this Tuesday, in a contest that will determine who runs and protects the country's most populous metropolis at a moment when Donald Trump has vowed to send military troops to the urban center.

Against that backdrop, New York has experienced a mayoral election that has matched two distinctly opposing Democrats against each other. The contest has turned into an increasingly bitter face-off, laced with alleged racism and anti-Muslim sentiment, but it is the political differences between the two main candidates that could have major implications for how the Democratic party fares in next year's midterm elections.

The Rising Progressive

In the progressive corner is the democratic socialist, the 34-year-old progressive candidate whose rapid ascent and grassroots campaign has attracted international attention. On the establishment side is the former governor, the ex- Democratic New York governor now campaigning independently – and enjoying the support of ultra-rich donors and corporations.

With days to go, it is Mamdani, the one-time underdog who beat his opponent in the Democratic primary who is solidly positioned as the frontrunner. Mamdani, who has run on a agenda of affordability and pledged to halt rent increases for about 2 million city residents, has outpaced Cuomo by double-digits in every poll taken in October, and it is very much the younger man's election to lose.

A Bitter Contest

Yet, Cuomo, who resigned as governor in recent years amid allegations of sexual harassment, has made it clear he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt manner. He has trashed his opponent's objectives as unachievable, and in recent days chuckled along as a broadcaster made Islamophobic remarks about Mamdani, who is Muslim. Two weeks ago, the independent was strongly criticized as racist after sharing an AI-generated ad that included a series of racist stereotypes and showed Mamdani freeing a group of criminals.

It's been a particularly ugly end to an race that could be critical to the path that the Democratic party, floundering in its reaction to Trump's power moves, takes in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

Should the progressive wins convincingly, the establishment party leaders who have declined to support his campaign will be forced to reckon with a message that has appealed to voters' frustration at inequality, inflation and the establishment. It would be difficult for Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries not to adopt at least a portion of Mamdani's progressive proposals about affordability, given the newcomer has created an enthusiasm within the party arguably not witnessed since the Vermont senator campaigned for the White House in 2016.

Conversely, should the former governor, who had been expected to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, complete a surprising riches-to-rags-to-riches victory, it could cement the party's current model of cautious, uninspiring resistance – a strategy that has angered the party base. A New York defeat of Mamdani's progressive, positive message could convince Schumer and Jeffries that the wisest course is to stick to the political center – even as surveys show the present version of the Democratic party is widely disliked nationwide.

Voter Enthusiasm

Residents of New York appear to favor the Mamdani vision. Surveys show that Mamdani supporters are much more excited about their candidate than Cuomo backers, something that has been evident throughout the campaign. Mamdani's engaging content on digital platforms, his optimistic vision for the city and his willingness to actually venture out and meet people in the city has attracted an army of more than 50,000 volunteers, many of them young or new participants.

Negative Tactics

However, Cuomo, in his late sixties, continues to fight. And with the stakes against him, the former governor has turned to negative campaigning in the final days.

After spending months launching various attacks at Mamdani to see what might resonate, the independent has narrowed his focus on targeting the candidate directly. He has labelled his rival, who was of Ugandan origin to Indian parents, an "radical", and appeared on Fox Business for an interview with Maria Bartiromo, where the candidate asserted New York “will not survive” his opponent as city leader. It hit bottom last week, when Cuomo chuckled and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said Mamdani would “cheer” another 9/11-style incident.

Political Landscape

The line of attack mirrors much of what the former president, who has deployed the national guard to Washington DC and warned to take similar action to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and maybe that is expected. A group of billionaire New Yorkers, including some who donated to Trump in the last presidential race, have pumped millions into trying to elect Cuomo elected, as other influential figures have pressured the Republican candidate to withdraw from the contest.

Candidate Backgrounds

For the Cuomo camp, and his billionaire supporters, are concerned, it should never have come to this point. When Mamdani, one of 150 state legislators, launched his campaign for mayor in October 2024, not many had heard of him, and in reality, few even paid attention.

The former governor, by comparison, eased his way into the contest in March 2025 and became the instant favorite. He was the political heavyweight who apparently held every edge. The classic establishment figure, he had married a Kennedy and worked in Bill Clinton’s administration. He assumed office as the state's leader in 2011, 17 years after his parent, Mario Cuomo, stepped down from the same position.

The progressive, who was elected to the state legislature in 2020, does not have the comparable background. But his commitment to providing no-cost transit and free childcare – along with the freeze-the-rent pledge – offer a more positive vision of the city's direction than his opponent's pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his vow to increase police presence.

Campaign Controversies

Nevertheless, Mamdani has faced some challenges in recent days, after footage surfaced appearing to show him implying the New York police department and the IDF were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the boot of the police is on your throat, it’s been influenced by the IDF,” the candidate said in the clip, filmed at a DSA convention in 2023. Mamdani, a vocal opponent of the Israeli government who has said the country is committing genocide in Gaza, indicated he was criticizing joint training exercises between the city police and IDF.

Emotional Response

With the election nearing, the candidate appears to have won sympathy and support, however, for his response to Cuomo’s escalating attacks.

The progressive addressed the independent's terrorism comments in an heartfelt recording. In it, the candidate remembered how, when he first ran for state assembly, a Muslim uncle advised to him that he did not have to disclose about his religion. It was a lesson, Mamdani said, that many Muslim New Yorkers had been told “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the shadows of our community. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where followers of Islam could embrace their full identities, and that if we were to emerge from those shadows, then it is in those shadows that we must leave our faith.”

Addressing the actions of his opponents, who has claimed Mamd