🔗 Share this article

New Yorkers will find out who will be their next mayor this Tuesday, in a race that will decide who governs and protects the country's largest city at a moment when Donald Trump has vowed to send military troops to the urban center.

Against that backdrop, New York has experienced a race for mayor that has matched two very different Democratic figures against one another. The contest has become an increasingly bitter face-off, laced with accusations of racism and anti-Muslim sentiment, but it is the political differences between the two main contenders that could have significant consequences for how the Democratic party fares in next year's congressional races.

The Rising Progressive

On the left side is the democratic socialist, the 34-year-old progressive candidate whose rapid ascent and people-powered movement has attracted global notice. Representing the old guard is the former governor, the ex- Democratic New York governor now campaigning independently – and enjoying the backing of ultra-rich donors and big business.

With days to go, it is Mamdani, the former longshot who beat Cuomo in the party primary who is firmly installed as the frontrunner. Mamdani, who has campaigned on a agenda of affordability and pledged to halt rent increases for about 2 million city residents, has outpaced Cuomo by double-digits across all surveys conducted in the fall, and it is very much the younger man's election to lose.

The Controversial Campaign

Yet, Cuomo, who stepped down as the state's leader in 2021 amid allegations of misconduct, has stated clearly he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an fair fashion. He has criticized his opponent's objectives as unrealistic, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a broadcaster made anti-Muslim comments about the candidate, who is a Muslim. Two weeks ago, Cuomo was widely condemned as bigoted after sharing an artificial intelligence video that featured a slew of racist stereotypes and showed Mamdani freeing a group of criminals.

This represents a rather grubby conclusion to an election that could be key to the direction that the party, struggling in its response to Trump's authoritarian grabs, adopts in the near future.

Broader Consequences

Should Mamdani secures a clear victory, the establishment party leaders who have declined to support his bid will be forced to reckon with a platform that has appealed to Americans' anger at inequality, soaring price rises and the establishment. It would be difficult for the Senate leader and the House leader not to embrace at least a portion of Mamdani's ambitious ideas about economic justice, given the fresh face has created an enthusiasm within the Democratic ranks arguably not seen since Bernie Sanders ran for president in 2016.

However, should the former governor, who had been predicted to win easily in the June primary, complete a remarkable comeback victory, it could reinforce national Democrats' current model of cautious, uninspiring resistance – a tactic that has infuriated grassroots members. A New York rejection of Mamdani's progressive, positive message could convince Schumer and Jeffries that the best plan is to remain in the political center – even as polls show the current iteration of the Democratic party is widely disliked nationwide.

Campaign Energy

Residents of the city seem to prefer the progressive agenda. Polls show that his backers are much more excited about their candidate than his opponent's supporters, something that has been apparent throughout the campaign. The candidate's snappy videos on social media, his hopeful outlook for the city and his willingness to actually get out and meet people in the metropolis has attracted an army of more than 50,000 supporters, many of them young or first-time voters.

Personal Attacks

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

After spending months launching various attacks at Mamdani to see what might stick, the independent has concentrated on attacking the candidate directly. He has called his rival, who was of Ugandan origin to South Asian heritage, an "radical", and popped up on conservative media for an discussion with Maria Bartiromo, where the candidate claimed New York “will not survive” Mamdani as mayor. It reached a nadir recently, when Cuomo laughed along and said “that’s another problem” after a radio host said the candidate would “cheer” another 9/11-style attack.

Political Landscape

This strategy echoes much of what the former president, who has sent the military reserves to the capital and threatened to do the same to New York, has said about Mamdani, and perhaps that is expected. A group of wealthy residents, including some who contributed to the Republican in the last presidential race, have pumped millions into trying to elect the independent into office, as other powerful voices have urged the Republican candidate to withdraw from the race.

Political Histories

For the his team, and his billionaire supporters, are concerned, it should never have come to this point. When the assemblyman, one of 150 state legislators, launched his mayoral bid in October 2024, few had heard of him, and in truth, barely anyone even paid attention.

Cuomo, by comparison, entered smoothly into the race in this year and became the instant favorite. He was the political heavyweight who apparently held all the advantages. The classic establishment figure, he had married a Kennedy and worked in Bill Clinton’s administration. He became the state's leader in 2011, seventeen years after his father, Mario Cuomo, left office from the identical role.

The progressive, who was voted in to the state legislature in recently, does not have the comparable background. But his commitment to providing no-cost transit and free childcare – along with the rent control promise – offer a brighter outlook of the future than Cuomo’s dire warnings about “mayhem” and rising criminal activity, and his promise to hire more police officers.

Recent Challenges

Still, the candidate has encountered difficulties in recent days, after video surfaced suggesting him implying the New York police department and the Israel Defense Forces were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the boot of the police is on your neck, it’s been laced by the Israeli military,” the candidate said in the recording, recorded at a Democratic Socialists of America convention in 2023. The progressive, a vocal opponent of the Israeli government who has said the country is committing genocide in Gaza, suggested he was questioning joint training exercises between the city police and Israeli forces.

Powerful Moment

As the race closes, the candidate seems to have gained empathy and backing, however, for his response to Cuomo’s increasing rhetoric.

Mamdani responded to Cuomo’s terrorism comments in an heartfelt recording. In it, the candidate recalled how, when he first ran for the legislature, a Muslim uncle advised to him that he did not have to tell people about his Muslim faith. It was a realization, Mamdani said, that many local Muslims had been taught “again and again”: “That security could only be found in the margins of our community. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where Muslims could embrace their true selves, and that if we were to step out from those shadows, then it is in those silence that we must set aside our beliefs.”

Addressing the actions of Cuomo and Sliwa, who has alleged Mamd