Zohran Mamdani poised to become NYC’s next mayor

New York Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani is set to make history as the first Indian American and first Muslim mayor of New York City, defeating former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in a stunning upset.

By the numbers: Mamdani secured 43.5% of first-choice votes compared to Cuomo’s 36.4% after 92% of votes were counted last night. Brad Lander finished third with 11.3%, followed by incumbent Mayor Eric Adams with 4.1%. The primary drew more than 980,782 Democratic voters, the highest turnout since 1989 when over one million New Yorkers nominated David Dinkins as the city’s first Black mayor. Early voting alone saw more than 380,000 participants, twice the 2021 primary numbers.

Cuomo concedes: Cuomo conceded the race last night, telling supporters, “Tonight was not our night. Tonight was Assemblyman Mamdani’s night and he put together a great campaign and he touched young people and inspired them and moved them and got them to come out and vote.” He also confirmed he had called Mamdani to congratulate him.

In his victory speech, Mamdani, 33, vowed to be a leader for all of the city. “I will be the mayor for every New Yorker, whether you voted for me, for Governor Cuomo or felt too disillusioned by a long-broken political system to vote at all,” he said.

A razor-thin race: Three major surveys released before Election Day showed dramatically different outcomes. An Emerson College/PIX11/The Hill poll projected Mamdani winning after eight rounds of ranked-choice tabulation, 52% to 48%, despite Cuomo holding a 36% to 34% first-round advantage. In contrast, a Yale/YouGov survey gave Cuomo a decisive 57% to 43% final-round victory following his 38% to 28% opening lead. A third HarrisX poll commissioned by Fix The City, a superPAC that supported Cuomo, showed an even wider margin, with the former governor capturing 52% to Mamdani’s 28% and Adams’ 20% in the final tally.

Final results are expected to be announced on July 1.