A member of Democratic Party, Zohran Mamdani, has emerged winner in the race to lead New York City, the largest city in the United States, concluding a heated contest that drew global attention.
His victory in Tuesday’s mayoral election marks a historic milestone for the city of over 8.4 million residents, renowned for its economic strength and cultural influence.
Mamdani’s win makes him the first Muslim, the first person of South Asian descent, and the first person born in Africa to lead New York City.
“Tonight, against all odds, we have grasped it. The future is in our hands,” the 34-year-old state assemblyman and newly elected mayor told a cheering crowd. “My friends, we have toppled a political dynasty.”
“New York, tonight you have delivered a mandate for change, a mandate for a new kind of politics, a mandate for a city we can afford,” he added.
While many across the diverse metropolis celebrated Mamdani’s historic victory as a sign of progress, his supporters have emphasised that his triumph was not about identity but about his focus on affordability.
Speaking before an enthusiastic crowd waving campaign signs and wearing yellow beanies, Mamdani acknowledged the broad coalition that powered his campaign.
“I speak of Yemeni bodega owners and Mexican abuelas, Senegalese taxi drivers and Uzbek nurses, Trinidadian line cooks and Ethiopian aunties, … to every New Yorker in Kensington and Midwood and Hunts Point,” he said.
“This city is your city, and this democracy is yours too,” he declared.
The election was also seen as a test of direction for Democratic politics, with Cuomo symbolising the party’s old establishment and Mamdani, an avowed democratic socialist, representing a new progressive path.
Cuomo, who ran as an independent after losing the Democratic primary to Mamdani in June, described the race as a reflection of internal party tensions.
“You have an extreme radical left that is run by the socialists that is challenging, quote unquote, moderate Democrats,” he said while casting his vote, calling it a “civil war in the Democratic Party that has been brewing for a while.”
Hours later, Cuomo conceded defeat, telling his supporters, “tonight was their night.”
In his victory speech, Mamdani addressed those divisions with defiance.
“I am young despite my best efforts to grow older,” he said.
“I am Muslim, I am a democratic socialist and, most damning of all, I refuse to apologise for any of this,” he added.
- AlJazeera