Socialist Zohran Mamdani prevails on the first ballot and is on track to be the Democratic nominee for NYC mayor
Should he win the nomination and subsequently the general election, the 33-year-old assemblyman would become the Big Apple's first Muslim mayor.
Mamdani on the campaign trail/ Angela Weiss.
Zohran Mamdani prevailed on the first ballot in the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City. The 33-year-old socialist Democrat beat Andrew Cuomo and is on track to receive the nomination in early July. If he wins the nomination and subsequently the general election, he would become the first Muslim mayor of the Big Apple.
With more than 90% of the votes counted, Mamdani got 43.5% of the vote, beating Cuomo's 36.3% and 11.4% for Brad Lander, the city controller, who even endorsed Mamdani. Further behind were candidates such as Adrienne Adams, Scott Stringer and others.
If his victory in the Democratic primary is confirmed, he will face Republican Curtis Sliwa and incumbent Eric Adams (who is running as an independent) in the Nov. 4 election.
Mamdani had the support of leading progressive Democrats such as Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jamaal Bowman, Summer Lee, Rashida Tlaib and Pramila Jayapal.
How does the voting system work in NYC?
In New York City, Ranked Choice Voting prevails. Instead of voting for only one candidate, this modality allows citizens to rank up to five candidates in order of preference, from one to five. However, it is not mandatory to mark the first five choices.
In the first round of voting, only the first options chosen by voters are counted. At the end of the count, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and then the second preference of those who chose him/her is taken into account. Their votes are then distributed among the remaining candidates.
This process will be repeated over and over again until someone surpasses 50% of the votes and is declared the winner. In 2021, Eric Adams won in the eighth round of voting.
In this case, it is presumed that a good part of Lander's votes will go to Mamdani for the next ballots. The two endorsed each other last June 13, hoping to unite the progressive vote to defeat Cuomo, who was hoping for a triumphant return to the political scene.
What changes does Mamdani propose for New York City?
- Create a network of state supermarkets.
- 2% income tax on millionaires.
- Create an alternative public safety force to the NYPD.
- Allocate $65 million for transgender health care, including for minors.
- Transform 50 schools into climate resilience centers.
- Free childcare and buses for all.
- Freeze rent prices.
- Hike the corporate tax rate from 7.25% to 11.5%.
- A $30 an hour minimum wage by 2030.
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