New York
CNN
—
Polls have closed in New York City in Tuesday’s contentious Democratic mayoral primary, which became a two-man contest between a former governor attempting a political comeback and a democratic socialist looking to boost far-left policies.
Andrew Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani were seen as the leading contenders in an 11-candidate field. Their matchup became a proxy battle between the Democratic establishment and the progressive wing of the party, as well as a fight over who’s best positioned to push back against President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker.
Under New York City’s ranked-choice voting system, voters were able to rank up to five candidates. Mamdani listed several other progressives he would rank and campaigned together with city Comptroller Brad Lander, while Cuomo said Tuesday that he voted just for himself. Only first-choice results will be released Tuesday, and if no candidate wins a majority, the first look at the ranked-choice results won’t be released until July 1.
Mamdani, a 33-year-old state assemblyman, has campaigned on policies such as rent freezes and a free city bus service. Cuomo has pitched himself as an experienced moderate focused on public safety.
Mamdani’s detractors have argued his limited legislative experience, progressive policies and criticisms of Israel make him too extreme for the city. Cuomo’s critics have pointed to the wave of nursing home deaths during the pandemic when he was governor and the close to a dozen sexual harassment allegations that led to his resignation in disgrace in 2021. Cuomo has denied the allegations.
The primary could also give a jolt of energy to whichever wing of the party emerges victorious. Mamdani has been endorsed by independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Several moderate Democrats, meanwhile, have backed Cuomo in part to stop Mamdani or at least blunt his momentum. Groups such as Third Way, a center-left think tank, have warned that a Mamdani victory would hurt Democrats. And high-profile Democrats from outside the city have weighed in to support Cuomo, including South Carolina Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn and former President Bill Clinton, under whom Cuomo served as housing secretary.
Regardless of Tuesday’s result, both Mamdani and Cuomo could still appear on the November general-election ballot. Cuomo plans to run as a third-party candidate if he loses and Mamdani could run as the candidate of the Working Families Party. That would set up a crowded general election race that would also include GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa, independent candidate Jim Walden and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, who skipped the Democratic primary to run as an independent.
Other top candidates in the race are Lander, New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, former Comptroller Scott Stringer and state Sen. Zellnor Myrie.
