‘We Have Won,’ Mamdani Says, as Cuomo Concedes N.Y.C. Mayoral Primary

 

‘We Have Won,’ Mamdani Says, as Cuomo Concedes N.Y.C. Mayoral Primary

 

Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old state assemblyman, galvanized voters with an energetic campaign focused on affordability. Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo left the door open to running in the general election.

 

Published June 24, 2025

Updated June 25, 2025, 2:44 a.m. ET

June 25, 2025, 2:44 a.m. ET2 minutes ago

Nicholas Fandos

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06/24/nyregion/nyc-democratic-primary-election-mayor

 

5 takeaways from the New York City Democratic primary.

Zohran Mamdani, a state assemblyman who campaigned relentlessly against New York’s spiraling affordability crisis, was on the verge of a seismic upset in the Democratic primary for mayor on Tuesday, powered by a diverse coalition from brownstone Brooklyn to the immigrant enclaves of Queens.

 

The result was not final. But Mr. Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist, declared victory, and Andrew M. Cuomo, his rival and the former governor, conceded defeat.

 

Mr. Mamdani’s success in one of the first major Democratic primaries since President Trump returned to the White House reverberated across the country and offered a potential road map for Democrats searching for a path back to power.

 

The Democratic primary winner would typically be considered the front-runner in November’s general election. Yet this fall’s contest promises to be unusually volatile. It will include Mayor Eric Adams, who is running as an independent. Mr. Cuomo also still has the option of running on a third-party ballot line, though he has not committed to continuing his campaign.

 

Here are five takeaways from the primary:

 

Mamdani’s exuberant optimism attracted disaffected New Yorkers.

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Mr. Mamdani, a third-term lawmaker from Queens, entered the race last fall with a thin résumé, virtually no citywide profile and views well to the left of many Democrats. He ended Tuesday as a breakout national figure.

 

He distinguished himself from a field of 10 rivals by offering an unapologetically progressive economic platform that was as memorable as it was ambitious. He proposed making city buses free, offering free child care and freezing the rent on rent-stabilized apartments — all financed by a large tax hike on the city’s wealthiest residents.

 

But his success also owed much to his exuberant style, demonstrative love for New York and mastery of social media that seemed to embody the kind of generational change many Democrats say they are hungry for. He filmed himself running into the icy waters of Coney Island in January and speaking with voters in the Bronx who swung to Mr. Trump last fall.

 

It was a stark contrast to Mr. Cuomo’s joyless campaign, which featured heavily staged events and a candidate who repeatedly warned voters that the city was in deep trouble that only he could fix.

 

“Together we have shown the power of the politics of the future, one of partnership and sincerity,” Mr. Mamdani said in a speech declaring victory.

 

The Cuomo brand seems to have lost its shine.

For four years since resigning as governor in a sexual harassment scandal, Mr. Cuomo, 67, has pined for a path back to power.

 

He thought he had found it in the New York City mayoralty, and campaigned with an air of inevitability. He locked up key labor endorsements, benefited from a $25 million super PAC and witheringly attacked Mr. Mamdani as dangerously unqualified for the job, all while making no apology for his past conduct.

 

In the end, it appears voters were simply not interested in a Cuomo restoration.

 

He must now decide whether to keep running in November on a third-party ballot line, or accept defeat and the likely end of a political career that included stints as the federal housing secretary, New York attorney general and governor.

 

“Tonight was not our night,” a deflated-looking Mr. Cuomo told supporters Tuesday night. He added, of Mr. Mamdani: “Tonight is his night. He deserved it. He won.”

 

Mamdani built a novel coalition.

Initial results suggested that Mr. Mamdani was succeeding by stitching together a novel Democratic coalition across the city, largely consisting of white, Asian and Latino voters in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens.

 

While Mr. Mamdani campaigned on helping working-class New Yorkers, he ran up large margins in the affluent, brownstone-lined streets of Park Slope, Cobble Hill and Clinton Hill in Brooklyn, as well as wealthy Manhattan enclaves like the East Village and swaths of Midtown.

 

Mr. Mamdani, who would be the city’s first Muslim and South Asian mayor, was also the top vote-getter in predominantly Asian and Latino communities in Queens. They included economically and racial diverse areas like Woodside, Jackson Heights, Sunnyside and Richmond Hill, home to a large South Asian population.

 

Notably, he struggled more in middle-class, predominantly Black areas in the Bronx and Southeast Queens, where Mr. Cuomo retained strong support from his years as governor. Mr. Cuomo also won islands of support on affluent Democratic strongholds like the Upper West and East Sides of Manhattan, and in Orthodox Jewish enclaves in Brooklyn, where Mr. Mamdani’s views on Israel alienated some voters.