Newsweek reports,
Zohran Mamdani’s chances of beating former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary surged on Monday, just one day before primary day and after many New Yorkers voted early.
Cuomo, the disgraced former governor, is trying for a political comeback in the state’s largest city.
Before last week, I was unaware of the existence of the socialist state assemblyman Mamdami. A new poll gives him fresh hope in tomorrow’s primary, CBS New York writes,
There’s good news for the Zohran Mamdani campaign Monday morning as New Yorkers get set to vote in Tuesday’s Democratic mayoral primary election.
A new Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill poll has Mamdani neck and neck with Cuomo, with Cuomo slightly ahead in the first round. But Mamdani ultimately beats Cuomo in its ranked choice voting simulation after eight rounds.
I’ve written elsewhere about the insidiousness of ranked-choice voting, where the mathematics of vote counting favors more extreme candidates.
Long story short, ranked-choice pushes leading candidates to appeal to fringe voters, rather than to each other’s voters. And in a primary election, there are far more fringe voters than moderates. So, the socialist Mamdami has more to work with than the relatively moderate Cuomo.
Mamdami has crated his appeal to attract voters interested in getting free stuff that someone else will pay for.
The winner in tomorrow’s (Tuesday) primary will face off in November against the incumbent Eric Adams, also a Democrat but running as an Independent.
Mamdami’s surge is already scaring the business community. From a New York Post columnist,
NYC business leaders are terrified of what socialist Zohran Mamdani may do as mayor.
As well they should be.
