Just after polls closed at 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Election Day in November, Zohran Mamdani made New York City history. As the first Muslim and South Asian elected mayor of New York, he sparked major attention throughout the United States. Not only is this election the end of current mayor Eric Adams’ reign, but it also promises a whole new New York City.
Mamdani grew up in Uganda until the age of seven, when he and his family moved to New York City. He graduated from Bronx High School of Science and went on to Bowdoin University, where he majored in Africana studies. Eventually, he was drawn towards politics when he began working as a housing counselor and witnessed the people of New York City struggling with poverty and housing issues.
At the beginning of Mamdani’s campaign, the polls showed that he was starting at roughly 1 percent. But he didn’t give up. He had a goal in mind for the future of New York City. Despite everyone telling him it was impossible, he accomplished three things that helped him win.
By using social media as a campaigning tool, he was able to get the attention of the young people of New York City. In this election, the younger group of voters was the key to success.
According to the New York Times, “Mamdani especially struck a chord with young voters in the election, with 68 percent of people under the age of 40 voting for Mamdani, 28 percent voting for Cuomo, and 3 percent voting for Sliwa.”
This shows that Zohran got their attention because he used social media in an influential way, generally not how politicians use social media.
Betsy Phipps, a junior, said, “Oftentimes, people are sort of more drawn to charismatic leaders, even if they are less qualified. If they are more charismatic, people are more inclined to want them to lead. A lot of us feel like politicians aren’t doing a lot to reach out to the younger voters, and so when Mamdani reached out to younger voters, it makes him seem more relatable.”
Mamdani also had one of the largest volunteer turnouts in New York City history. He had over 1.5 million doors knocked on, advertising his campaign and urging New York City’s citizens to get out and vote.
Ben Davis, a writer for The Guardian, stated, “The most important number from Mamdani’s campaign is 100,000. That’s the number of people who actively volunteered for the campaign, knocking on doors, talking to their neighbors, and co-workers. That’s one in every 10 people who even voted for Mamdani.”
Many of Mamdani’s votes came from attention to his new economic policies that would bring hard-working people some peace. Mamdani promised to have free universal childcare, free bus service, rent freezing, and an increased income tax. This is important because the numbers have shown that wealth inequality has been growing.
Derrick Hamilton from City and State New York, a news organization, said in an opinion story, “The numbers bear out the urgency: wealthy households [the top 1 percent of earners] now capture 44 percent of all income in this city, while the bottom 40 percent take home only 8 percent of total income. Without public investment, this architecture of advantage is unmistakable – not accidental, but designed.”
Many politicians around the U.S. were concerned that Mamdani was too young or had the wrong motives to be running for mayor. There was criticism from both political parties, and Dick Schumer, a Democratic senator for New York State, refused to endorse Mamdani, although he didn’t publicly say why. We have yet to see what Mamdani will bring to New York City, but he has promised many things.
Even though Mamdani started with less than 1 percent of voters, with little to no aid in publicity, he was victorious. Despite political affiliations, we can all take something important away from his story. When you put your mind to something, you can make it from the bottom all the way to the top.
