On November 5, 2025, New York City witnessed a political upset that’s still reverberating far beyond the five boroughs. Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democratic nominee, claimed victory in the city’s fiercely contested mayoral race, securing 50.4% of the vote—1,036,051 ballots—against two established rivals: former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as a third-party candidate and garnered 41.6% (854,995 votes), and Republican Curtis Sliwa, who received 7.1% (146,137 votes), according to official tallies reported by multiple outlets including NPR and NBC.
Mamdani’s win was historic in more ways than one. Not only did he become the first Muslim and South Asian mayor in the city’s history, but he also became the youngest person elected to the role in a century. His campaign, marked by bold promises and unabashed progressive ideals, has become a beacon for left-leaning activists on both sides of the Atlantic.
At the core of Mamdani’s platform was a direct response to New York’s affordability crisis. He pledged to launch the city’s first universal childcare program for children aged 6 weeks to 5 years, expanding on existing pre-K and 3-K offerings. He also proposed making all city buses free, freezing rents for the city’s one million rent-stabilized tenants, and—perhaps most controversially—establishing five government-subsidized grocery stores, one in each borough. Describing this initiative as a “public option for produce,” Mamdani aimed to tackle the soaring cost of groceries that has burdened many New Yorkers.
To fund these sweeping programs, Mamdani called for raising taxes on residents earning more than $1 million annually and increasing the city’s corporate tax rate. While his supporters hailed these ideas as long overdue, critics—most notably Republican Curtis Sliwa—questioned whether these revenue streams would be sufficient to support such an ambitious agenda.
The campaign was not without controversy. President Donald Trump, who is seeking re-election, took a particular interest in the New York mayoral race, unleashing a barrage of inflammatory rhetoric against Mamdani. Trump labeled him a “communist” and a “communist lunatic,” claiming that New York had “skipped socialist and put in a communist instead.” The president even went so far as to warn that New Yorkers would flee the city under Mamdani’s leadership and floated the possibility of stripping him of his U.S. citizenship, a move Mamdani condemned as “an attack on our democracy” and “an attempt to send a message to every New Yorker who refuses to hide in the shadows.”
Mamdani, who was born in Uganda and later became a naturalized U.S. citizen, has consistently rejected the communist label, instead identifying as a democratic socialist—a political philosophy he shares with national figures like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. He’s made it clear that his mission is to “give voice to the working people” rather than corporations, a stance that has resonated with many but unnerved others.
The backlash wasn’t limited to rhetoric. On Staten Island, the city’s most conservative borough, State Senator Andrew Lanza and State Assemblyman Sam Pirozzolo revived efforts for Staten Island to secede from New York City, arguing that Mamdani’s policies were “out of sync with the values of communities on Staten Island,” as Lanza told the New York Post.
Yet, for all the heated words, Mamdani has demonstrated a pragmatic approach to governance. In late November, President Trump and Mayor-elect Mamdani surprised many by meeting in the Oval Office. Despite their earlier public attacks, the two leaders exchanged mutual praise. According to NPR, Trump told reporters, “I think you’re going to have hopefully a really great mayor. And the better he does, the happier I am.” Mamdani echoed the sentiment, saying, “I appreciated the meeting with the president, and as he said, it was a productive meeting focused on a place of shared admiration and love, which is New York City and the need to deliver affordability to New Yorkers.”
Mamdani explained that his willingness to reach out to the White House stems from a commitment to his constituents. “This is a relationship that will be critical to the success of the city,” he told NBC, emphasizing that while he disagrees with many Trump administration policies, he is prepared to engage if it means “delivering on lowering the cost of living for New Yorkers.” He’s also vowed to “take on authoritarian Trump” when necessary and fight for the rights of all New Yorkers, signaling a careful balance between cooperation and resistance.
But the ripple effects of Mamdani’s victory are not confined to New York. As reported by NPR’s Fatima Al-Kassab, left-wing politicians and strategists across Europe are studying Mamdani’s campaign in hopes of replicating his success. In France, Claire Lejeune of the left-wing La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) party called Mamdani’s win “a beacon of hope,” adding, “Its message echoes not only in the U.S., but also for us in France.” Members of her party even traveled to New York to observe Mamdani’s campaign firsthand.
In the United Kingdom, the Green Party’s national leader Zack Polanski has been dubbed the “British Mamdani” by the press. Polanski, who has helped double the party’s membership and boost its polling numbers, is eager to adopt Mamdani’s message of lowering bills, taxing billionaires, and fighting inequality. “Lowering bills, taxing billionaires. And for Zohran, it’s about affordable rent, universal child care and the message that he’s sending ultimately about the inequality that exists in New York. I want to take that whole message and spread it across an entire country,” Polanski told NPR.
Polanski’s campaign even sent its video team to collaborate with Mamdani’s videographers, hoping to capture some of the digital magic that propelled Mamdani’s rise. But as Polanski noted, “I think more important than any of that is the message.”
The admiration doesn’t stop there. In Germany, the Democratic socialist Die Linke party has also reached out to Mamdani’s team, eager to emulate his grassroots, door-to-door campaign approach. Heidi Reichinnek, the party’s leader, said, “What better way to learn from each other and celebrate together?” and outlined plans to use Mamdani’s tactics in upcoming German elections.
European left-wing leaders are particularly inspired by Mamdani’s refusal to compromise with what they describe as the “neoliberal establishment.” As Lejeune put it, Mamdani succeeded “not by compromising basically with neoliberal establishment, but by standing his ground on his ideas, not giving up on defending the Palestinian people, not giving up on a set of radical and transformative politics.”
As Mamdani prepares to take office in January 2026, New York City stands at a crossroads. Some see his election as a choice of “hope over fear,” while others remain deeply skeptical. Yet, there’s no denying that his victory has injected new energy into progressive movements at home and abroad—and, perhaps, set the stage for a new era in urban politics.
