A New York Muslim, a self-proclaimed “democratic socialist,” became the face of hope Tuesday for millions of citizens in the United States who needed to regain faith in their country in the face of Donald Trump’s display of authoritarianism. Naturalized immigrant Zohran Mamdani, 34 years old and unknown to most New York residents only a year ago, won the mayoral election with a huge difference of nine points over his main rival, former governor Andrew Cuomo, heir to a half-century political dynasty and representative of the establishment democratic citizen. Trump’s irritation with Mamdani even led him to ask for a vote for Cuomo and insult voters. The massive response is a slap to the pride of the president, who is a notable of the city, and an example of the toxic effect of his ways.
The injection of hope that Mamdani’s victory represents at the same time opens a gap in the Democratic Party. Although the election represents a clear rejection of Trump, it also represents a rejection of a certain profile of the party. Mamdani’s is a left-wing minority candidacy that has bypassed the formidable political machine of the New York Democrats with the support of progressivism led by Senator Bernie Sanders. His message was aimed above all at the causes of inequality: the price of houses, the cost of living and precariousness. That is, he appealed to the same discontent that pushed many to vote for Trump and which today sees those dynamics accelerating instead of attenuating.
Thus began months of debate in a party that has demonstrated the electoral effectiveness of opposing Trump with proposals in favor of the impoverished middle class, but which is going through very difficult times, winning the elections with a speech perceived as “socialist” outside the cities. How much curiosity Mamdani is inconceivable outside the New York ecosystem, and how much he represents a model for reconnecting with the majority of the American electorate in the 2026 elections, is the question Democrats must resolve.
Despite its great symbolism, Mamdani’s victory is not the most significant of multiple elections held in the United States on Tuesday. Democrats won key gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia, the latter in Republican hands. Both will be for women with a moderate profile. The resounding victories at the state level reveal that there is a significant critical mass willing to vote against Trump and that Republicans cannot counter with candidates other than Trump.
More than 75 million people who voted for Kamala Harris find themselves without any power at the federal level to stop the White House’s bigotry. That’s why Tuesday’s most significant victory in regaining some power in Washington was Proposition 50 in California. On the premise of “fighting fire with fire,” Gov. Gavin Newsom, an obvious presidential contender, put to the vote a proposal to redraw voting districts to compensate for flagrant electoral map manipulation by Republicans in other states to secure seats. The massive support for changing the rules of the game indicates a new willingness on the part of Democrats to use the power they have, much of which is outside Washington, to fight Trump’s authoritarian onslaught. The desire and the votes are there.
