The election of Zohran Mamdani, member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), as mayor of New York City on November 4 was a kick in the teeth to United States President Donald Trump and his “Make America Great Again” movement, and a beacon of hope for socialists around the world.
Mamdani’s win was built on an exciting campaign that mobilised more than 100,000 volunteers to promote his platform, which included tackling the cost-of-living crisis by freezing rents, implementing free buses and opening publicly owned supermarkets.
Mamdani opposed Israel’s genocide in Gaza, drawing the ire of the ruling elite and corporate media.
Winnie Marion, a DSA member based in NYC, told Green Left that working-class people had long been presented with an “underwhelming vision to a lot of overwhelming problems”.
“The affordability crisis has gotten worse, rents continue to increase and our wages have stagnated for decades. In New York City, we face all of these issues, and the establishment Democrats have not been able to respond to the populist narrative that the right is presenting.
“Trump has sold this lie that the affordability crisis will be solved by further exploiting the working class, deepening inequality and targeting each other. It is a narrative of hate, fear and division.
“Similar narratives have been used around the world, blaming immigrants and other marginalised groups for problems such as housing and unemployment.”
Meanwhile, Marion said, the Democrats promoted the status quo, instead of coming up with solutions to “dig ourselves out of the crisis caused by the exploitation of workers by large corporations”.
“Zohran coming in and presenting a real alternative with policy solutions that feel sustainable, winnable and tangible — and could actually improve working people’s lives — was exciting for people.
“People are hungry for real change, and this campaign has shown that people can come together and fight for something better than fighting over scraps, and building a new future that suits us all.”
Billionaire class fights back
Mamdani faced huge opposition from Trump and the billionaire class, which reportedly amassed more than US$22 million in donations to support his opponent, former New York governor Andrew Cuomo.
“A lot of the campaign against Zohran was based on racist narratives, which actually alienated people from [Cuomo and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa’s campaigns] and showed how archaic their political views are.
“It was disgusting and shocking to see these AI-generated videos about how Zohran as a Muslim would be a ‘scary threat to the city’.”
Marion said Mamdani will have to deal with Trump’s constant attacks, including the threat of the National Guard being deployed.
He will also have to respond to federal cuts that impact New Yorkers, such as the recent pause in funding to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps people on low incomes afford food.
“Eight times the number of people who use food banks get their food from SNAP programs, so federal cuts to things like food and healthcare will need to be addressed by the mayor.”
Some have expressed concern that Mamdani’s election would draw people back towards the Democrats or that he could “sell out” to the establishment Democrats.
Marion said it is understandable to have doubts and scepticism, but that Mamdani’s victory has created “a new pathway for socialists to organise in our city. That is a very important and tangible effect, there has been so much energy and empowerment of New Yorkers to stand up and fight and build power.
“No mayoral administration will be perfect, but we will get things done and encourage people to believe that movements of working people can have real and tangible effects.
“When people fight together, in social movements, labour movements or electoral campaigns, we can have a real impact, and these campaigns help people become aware of how capitalism and exploitation is affecting their everyday lives.”
Marion said that polls show more people are identifying as socialists, and the DSA has grown significantly from the campaign. “We are now able to take on these challenges in a new environment that isn’t so hostile to us, at a time when we need a counterbalance to Donald Trump because we are losing our rights.”
Challenges to come
Marion said a major challenge for Mamdani would be getting state funding for his programs. “A lot of our funding for city programs comes from state taxes. We want to raise taxes on the ultra wealthy to raise the funds we need to implement these plans.
“That requires working with Governor Kathy Hochul, who is more of a centrist Democrat, but did endorse Zohran and said she is willing to work with him.”
Marion said the mayoral position is a huge managerial and administrative role and a lot of work will need to be done to shift the established bureaucracy.
“The mayor is historically always hated in New York City because it is always easy to blame them for any problems.
“The establishment has been pushing the narrative that Zohran is young and inexperienced and are looking for the first sign of weakness to latch on to.”
Marion said it will be important to maintain the relationship between Mamdani and the DSA, while maintaining an independent identity for the organisation.
“You can’t snap your fingers and have a socialist city tomorrow because we still exist within the economic system, so there will be moments when Zohran will differ from DSA’s priorities.”
Marion said the DSA is planning to continue mobilising the huge number of volunteers who joined the campaign to support Mamdani’s plans for the city.
“The corruption does not end here. The dark money in our politics does not end here. We have won one race but that does not mean that capital, which is so threatened by our powerful movement, is just going to back off and let all of this happen.
“We have to use the energy and platform created by this win to run a campaign that brings this excitement in pushing for these policies at the state and city level.”
Building on momentum
Marion said the DSA created a new organisation called Our Time for New York City to encourage people who may not identify as socialist but want to continue building on the momentum of this victory to join together and fight alongside DSA and the other organisations who helped elect Mamdani.
“The idea is that Zohran as the mayor can stoke the flames of organisation in our neighbourhoods to try and engage people to mobilise for change.
“We want to encourage New Yorkers to come together and fight for something that’s bigger and broader than one election race can be.”
Marion said the DSA has taken many lessons from this campaign, including reaching out to broader layers of people, having a strong presence on the ground and having a clear agenda and communication on key issues connected to affordability and improving people’s day-to-day lives.
The campaign also showed the value of strong branding and identity and reaching people on social media and in-person.
“Being boldly socialist and proud about that can speak to people and make people feel like they are part of the campaign.
“We are looking to the future and thinking about how we can expand people’s political imagination through our electoral campaigns.”
[Winnie Marion will speak via zoom, alongside local activists, at a forum on November 22, at 2pm AEST, at the Albion Peace Centre in Magan-djin/Brisbane.]