Mamdani on the campaign trail
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I Vote counting is under way after voting closed in New York ‘s mayoral race. Ever since his victory in the Democratic primary, Zohran Mamdani has been the clear favorite to win.
Polls aggregated by pollsters have Mamdani anywhere from five to 25 points ahead of his opponents, Curtis Sliwa, the Republican candidate, and Andrew Cuomo, who entered the race as an independent after losing in the Democratic primary.
According to the New York City Board of Elections, 734,317 early votes have been cast over the past nine days – more than quadruple the total for 2021.
But late on Monday, Cuomo received endorsements from President Donald Trump, a Republican, and from Elon Musk, the world’s richest man. It is unclear if those last-minute endorsements will sway voters. According to reports, the endorsements were of no consequence, and have not tamed Mamdan’s momentum.
Mamdani, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), has energised liberal voters drawn to his proposals for universal, free childcare, free buses, and a rent freeze for New Yorkers living in about one million rent-regulated apartments.
New York City holds mayoral elections every four years, with a two-term limit for any individual. The current mayor, Democrat Eric Adams, who has been in office since January 2022, withdrew his candidacy earlier in the year following several controversies.
Most notable of these was his federal criminal indictment on bribery and conspiracy charges, which was ultimately dismissed by a judge in April.
As of February, there were 5.1 million registered voters in New York City, of whom 65 percent were Democrats and 11 percent were Republicans. About 1.1 million voters were not registered with any party, and voter registration closed on October 25, one week before the November 4 election.
In the last New York City mayoral election, just more than 1.1 million voters cast ballots – about 21 percent of registered voters.
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