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In a night that reshaped New York City politics, Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, 34, was elected mayor, defeating former governor Andrew Cuomo in a race that pitted two visions of the city’s future, one rooted in progressive idealism, the other in pragmatic restoration.
“Donald Trump, since I know you’re watching, I have four words for you: turn the volume up!” Mamdani declared to roaring cheers Tuesday night, moments after being declared the victor. His win marked not only a generational shift but also a defiant rebuke of President Trump, whose return to the White House nine months ago has galvanized Democratic opposition nationwide.
Cuomo, conceding shortly before 11 p.m., took a more measured tone. “This campaign was the right fight to wage, and I am proud of what we did and what we did together,” he said from his campaign headquarters. “Tonight was their night and as they start to transition to government, we will all help any way we can because we need our New York City government to work.”
With 90% of votes counted, Mamdani led Cuomo by roughly 181,000 votes, part of a Democratic sweep that, as observers noted, “elevated a new generation of leaders and injected fresh momentum into the beleaguered party.”
Mamdani, a democratic socialist, ran on a platform of bold economic reform, including a citywide rent freeze, universal childcare, and aggressive measures to combat the cost-of-living crisis. “This is not only how we stop Trump,” he told supporters, “it’s how we stop the next one.”
Trump, meanwhile, had repeatedly targeted the young lawmaker during the campaign. On 60 Minutes, he called Mamdani “a communist running New York” and warned that electing him meant “wasting the money you’re sending there.”
Cuomo, 67, positioned himself as the centrist alternative, a steady hand after his resignation as governor in 2021. “I know what needs to be done and I know how to do it. Experience matters,” he had said when launching his campaign in March. His message focused on affordability, crime, and competence. “The city’s out of control, the city’s in decline,” he warned. “That’s how I feel also, by the way.”
During the debates, Cuomo didn’t hold back. “I did things; you have never had a job,” he told Mamdani. “There is no reason to believe you have any merit or qualification for 8.5 million lives.” Yet Mamdani’s progressive appeal, backed by figures like Sen. Bernie Sanders, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Gov. Kathy Hochul, proved stronger.
Despite endorsements from former mayors and even President Trump (“You must vote for him and hope he does a fantastic job,” Trump urged), Cuomo fell short. His concession speech drew boos when he congratulated Mamdani, prompting him to scold his own supporters: “No, that is not right and that is not us.”
More than two million New Yorkers voted, the highest turnout in a mayoral race since 1969, signaling deep engagement in a city still defining itself after years of crisis and division.
Mamdani, aware of the challenges ahead, acknowledged that his ambitious program “poses a challenge” but vowed to press on. “To get to any of us you will have to go through all of us,” he said, signaling a combative stance toward Trump’s threats to cut federal funding.
For Cuomo, the defeat may mark the end of a long and storied political career, one that began under his father, former Governor Mario Cuomo, and spanned decades of public service. For Mamdani, it is the beginning of what he calls “a new chapter for a city that refuses to be afraid.”
As the crowd in Queens chanted his name, Mamdani summed up the night’s meaning in one defiant sentence: “If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him.”
With information from CBS News and Alarabiya English.
