With just one day left for New York City voters to elect the Big Apple’s next mayor, the latest polls show Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani maintaining his lead.
Mamdani, a 33-year-old assemblyman from Queens who is an unapologetic socialist, has a double-digit lead in most polls going into election day.
The Real Clear Polling average of polls has Mamdani ahead by +14.3 points over former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, the independent candidate. Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa trails both of them.
More than 735,000 New Yorkers have turned out for early voting, marking a record turnout, according to CBS News. It’s more than quadruple the number of voters who cast early ballots in the city’s 2021 mayoral election.
Mamdani has advocated for rent control, increasing taxes on the wealthy, and reallocating police funding to social services. The socialist has also faced backlash for criticizing Israel, while repeatedly refusing to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada.”
The far-left radical has also promised to provide $100 million in legal aid for illegal immigrants facing deportation, calling it a “cornerstone” of his campaign.
If Mamdani secures a victory in Tuesday’s race, roughly 765,000 New York City residents are prepared to leave the city, the Daily Mail reported, citing a survey conducted by J.L. Partners.
“If anywhere near that number actually left, the economic impact would be seismic,” pollster James Johnson told the outlet. “Older New Yorkers, Staten Islanders, and white voters are the most likely to say they would pack up and go.”
“When asked to sum up what Mamdani’s New York would look like, respondents called it a ‘disaster,’ ‘hell,’ and — close your eyes younger readers — a ‘s***hole,’” he added.
President Donald Trump has also vowed to withhold funding from the city if Mamdani clinches the election.
“He is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great City,” Trump wrote on Truth Social in September. “Remember, he needs the money from me, as President, in order to fulfill all of his FAKE Communist promises. He won’t be getting any of it, so what’s the point of voting for him?”
