Entering the mayoral race with under 1% support, Zohran Mamdani’s prospects of winning initially seemed unlikely. Here are some of the ways he turned the race around.
When Zohran Mamdani launched his mayoral campaign a year ago, he was a relatively unknown state assemblyman polling at under 1%, but on Tuesday, the 34-year-old democratic socialist coasted to victory with over 50% support in the highest-turnout race for mayor in decades.
How did he do it?
Affordability was one avenue. Mamdani offered a series of proposals aimed at making notoriously expensive New York City more affordable for people who live there, promising free busing, city-run grocery stores, rent freezes, universal childcare — to be paid for by higher taxes on the wealthy. As one political science expert suggested, it helped that people seemed to believe he could deliver.
Drew Engelhardt, an assistant professor of political science at Stony Brook University, tracked the mayoral race and said he thinks voters were willing to gamble on Mamdani because they feel he’s a “credible messenger” for their concerns.
“Even if his desired policy agenda faces high hurdles, folks would be willing to give him the benefit of the doubt because he’s potentially seen as best at understanding the concerns about people like them”, said Engelhardt.
Mamdani’s promises on affordable housing did resonate with voters — CBS News exit polls found an overwhelming majority of voters said that housing costs are a big problem.
A neighborhood-by-neighborhood analysis of Tuesday night’s results indicated Mamdani won middle-income voters and renters — while higher-income homeowners broke for his opponent, former Gov.
