JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
A major development tonight on the local election that is being watched across the country. Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani will be the next mayor of New York City. That is according to a call made by the Associated Press shortly after polls closed at 9 p.m. Eastern time. Mamdani came from behind in the Democratic primaries last summer, and then he dominated in the general election, beating former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent, and Republican Curtis Sliwa. NPR’s Brian Mann is on the street tonight in Brooklyn and joins us now. Hi.
BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: Hi, Juana.
SUMMERS: Brian, that was a pretty quick call as elections go. Tell us why.
MANN: Yeah. This was a huge turnout across the city, and Zohran Mamdani just, again, dominated. He got a massive turnout from his supporters. I’m here at his celebration headquarters in Brooklyn, and when news came that the race had been called, Juana, there was a huge cheer. People here have been celebrating all evening. They thought this was the way it was going to go, and now it’s official.
SUMMERS: He faced a veteran political operator in Andrew Cuomo. He also faced tens of millions of dollars in super PAC spending by billionaires who were really hoping to block the election of a Democratic socialist. So I want to talk for a minute about Cuomo’s campaign. What seemed to happen there?
MANN: Yeah. This is a politician in Andrew Cuomo who had a lot of baggage coming in. He had a sexual harassment scandal. There were big questions about the way he managed the COVID pandemic, and he struggled to overcome that. But I have to say, Juana, the other bit that was dramatic was that he ran up against a powerful new form of campaigning in Mamdani. People here over and over again said that they’re tired of the grim, negative political culture that they’ve seen in both parties in recent years. Mamdani - people again and again said he had a smile on his face. He offered hope. And so when Cuomo kept talking about fear and public safety, that resonates here. But people here said they just wanted something new, a different kind of politics.
SUMMERS: Brian, I do have to say Mamdani is just 34 years old. He is currently a state assemblyman, and he is now going to take the helm of the largest city in the country. Just remind us briefly of the challenges he’ll face in that.
MANN: Yeah. It’s going to be huge difficulties for him, especially because President Trump has promised to cut off federal funds to the city if he’s elected. I asked his supporters about that, and again and again they said they think he’ll surround himself with technocrats, with skilled officials. And people here say that they believe he can do things like making rent more affordable, grocery prices better. But, you know, Juana, it’s a big challenge. It’s a complicated city and a difficult time in American politics. So he’s got a hard road ahead of him, for sure.
SUMMERS: That’s NPR’s Brian Mann. You can hear him there reporting on the streets of New York City, where Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani has won the mayoral race. That is according to a call made by the Associated Press. Full election night coverage continues tomorrow on Morning Edition. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
