Zohran Mamdani offered New Yorkers a political revolution – and won | Bhaskar Sunkara

ZOhran Mamdani’s victory in New York The city’s democratic primaries in the city are more than just electoral disorder. It is an affirmation that the progressive policy, when following it with discipline, vision and vitality, can resonate on a large scale – even in a city known as established power structures.

This was not the normal primary. Andrew Como, a former ruler who looked at the political fall of grace, could not be repaired just a few years ago, put himself as an overwhelming favorite. With the support of millions of companies’ interests, Super PACS, and billionaire Manderon such as Michael Bloomberg and Bill Akman, Como relied heavily on institutional self -deficiency and support from top to bottom. However, it became clear that this alone could not carry it through the finish line.

Mamdani, a 33 -year -old legislator from Queens, conducted an uncompromising disciplined campaign based on living cost issues, and it is issued on basics such as housing, transportation, child care and grocery stores. Repeated attempts to inform Al -Mamadani that they are just a “Muslim socialist” with radical ideas, to impose a policy of division to lead, or make the elections a referendum on Israel.

But it was not just the discipline of the correspondence that made Mamdani successful. Mamdani has a political talent rooted in the real charisma. He allowed him to let him down with the language, the clarity of the goal and the originality to speak convincingly to the voters from many different backgrounds. It was not just another political activist. He has proven to be a natural leader – a person who is able to communicate moral facts without appearing moral.

Meanwhile, Komo’s attempt to re -invent himself in the New York City policy was flawed from the beginning. Many voters were seen as his nomination as an arrogant matter from the authority, and it is a project to rehabilitate rather than a serious commitment to facing the city’s challenges. He neglected to engage seriously with the relatively new New York voting system, and isolate himself stubbornly instead of building alliances, even among central figures.

The difference in the campaign patterns was blatant and useful. Mamdani’s campaign at the base level was driven by committed volunteers, including young socialist activists in America (DSA). It was also modern and smart, with the awareness that an increasing share of voters constitutes its opinions through social media and finding innovative ways to communicate politics. Miscellaneous, nearly a quarter of early voting in this preliminary election Come Voters for the first time in the New York elections.

However, the results show that his voting base was not limited to young voters who received education in the most involved college. It is worth noting that Mamdani succeeded in neighborhoods such as Bay Ridge, Bensonhour, Decker Heights, Sansit Park, Brighton Beach – all areas that picked the right in the 2024 presidential elections.

This was a reward for his consistent efforts to reach the young working voters who felt isolated from the Democratic Party; The first Mamdani virus video came in this campaign in November, when the New York residents who voted in favor of Trump met their frustration in the cost. In the face of a skeptical audience, Mamdani was able to communicate with democratic socialism as a global policy rather than a dangerous specialized identity or ideology.

However, the construction of the coalition lacks political determination with the same extent. It was important to the success of Mamdani’s successful support for progressive personalities such as financial observer Brad Lander. Lander called for himself as the most suitable person to be a mayor, but before the nature of the vote for the ranking and the need to defeat Komo through the crossed Mamdani. Lander’s approach helped to formulate a coherent and coherent front – an increasingly rare thing in the progressive MI – and has proven decisive.

Voters, for their part, have proven that they are ready for change. They refused to submit to sarcastic feeding about a wave of supposed crime and anti -Semitism that will come from Mamdani’s victory. Instead, they took a clear look at their lives, evaluated the Democratic Party’s failures, and chose something new, new and mainly different on a failed political institution.

However, Tuesday’s results have deeper questions about the future. Mamdani’s victory must now be tested in this preliminary election, which is important, against Eric Adams and Komo is likely to be again in the November elections. Beyond that lies a more challenging test: the ruling. Progressive people around America have seen closely watched Brandon Johnson from Chicago, another mayor of the leftist, against the firm opposition and because of his administrative failures. Mamdani will need to move in obstacles better if elected.

A historical precedent may offer some reassurance to those who want the leaders of the mayor in New York well. The tradition of successful municipal socialism in America, including in cities such as Milwaukee under “Socialists in the Sewers”, and recently, in Berlington under the leadership of Bernie Sanders, real examples of socialist rule, which is efficient, effective and popular. The legacy of Sanders in Perlington, in particular, stands as a template that Mamdani can follow: the initial practical judgment that steadily builds a broader legitimacy between skeptics and competitors.

New York municipalities are usually a man who come from anywhere and do not go anywhere, politically. But Mamdani can break this template, after Sanders’ path from the effective municipal leadership to become a solid voice in national policy.

However, for success, Mamdani must trust his rule – which has already proven to be strategically accurate and sound. It must maintain independence from two institutions of the city: the company that opposed it at each turn, and the progressive institution that relies on NGOs, whose political instincts have failed in recent election sessions.

The Mamdani platform, which focuses on the supply aspect of “Al -Wafra” with demands for fair distribution and investment in the wide public sector, provides exactly a kind of the social democratic governance model that New York needs strongly. There is nothing mainly radical about these demands; Instead, what is really radical is the excitement that they have inspired among the voters, including many who have already fully separated local policy.

Tonight, Mamdani undoubtedly achieved a great victory in the largest city in America. But we must be sober about the upcoming challenges. Electoral victories are only meaningful if they translate into tangible improvements in people’s lives, and political momentum can quickly dissipate if governance is short. Mamdani faces a tremendous responsibility – not only for his direct electoral circle but also a broader gradual movement that is closely monitored from all over the country and the world.

• Bhaskar Sunkara is the head of the nation, the founding editor Jacobin, and the author of The Scipist Diffesto: The Case for Pladical Politics in the era of severe inequality