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New Yorkers will discover who will be their new city leader this election day, in a race that will determine who governs and protects the country's largest city at a time when the former president has vowed to deploy military troops to the city.

Against that backdrop, New York has witnessed a mayoral election that has pitted two very different Democrats against each other. The election has turned into an increasingly bitter showdown, laced with alleged racial bias and Islamophobia, but it is the political differences between the two main candidates that could have significant consequences for how the Democratic party fares in next year's congressional races.

The Rising Progressive

On the left side is Zohran Mamdani, the young democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and grassroots campaign has attracted international attention. Representing the old guard is Andrew Cuomo, the ex- Democratic New York governor now campaigning independently – and enjoying the backing of wealthy contributors and corporations.

As the election approaches, it is the progressive, the former longshot who beat his opponent in the party primary who is firmly installed as the leading candidate. The candidate, who has run on a platform of affordability and promised to freeze rent for about 2 million New Yorkers, has led Cuomo by double-digits across all surveys taken in October, and it is very much the progressive's election to lose.

The Controversial Campaign

Yet, Cuomo, who stepped down as the state's leader in recent years amid allegations of misconduct, has stated clearly he will fight to the end, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt manner. He has trashed his opponent's objectives as unrealistic, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a radio host made Islamophobic remarks about Mamdani, who is Muslim. Recently, Cuomo was widely condemned as racist after sharing an AI-generated ad that included a series of racist stereotypes and showed Mamdani freeing a group of criminals.

It's been a particularly ugly conclusion to an election that could be critical to the path that the Democratic party, struggling in its reaction to Trump's authoritarian grabs, takes in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

Should Mamdani secures a clear victory, the party establishment who have declined to support his bid will be forced to reckon with a message that has appealed to Americans' frustration at economic disparity, inflation and the establishment. It would be hard for the Senate leader and the House leader not to embrace at least a portion of Mamdani's ambitious ideas about economic justice, given the newcomer has created an excitement within the Democratic ranks perhaps not witnessed since the Vermont senator campaigned for the White House in 2016.

Conversely, should Cuomo, who had been expected to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, achieve a surprising comeback victory, it could cement the party's current model of cautious, lackluster resistance – a tactic that has angered grassroots members. A NYC rejection of Mamdani's optimistic platform could persuade Schumer and Jeffries that the best plan is to stick to the political center – even as polls show the present version of the Democratic party is deeply unpopular across the country.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in New York seem to prefer the progressive agenda. Polls show that Mamdani supporters are far more enthusiastic about their choice than his opponent's supporters, something that has been evident during the race. The candidate's snappy videos on social media, his optimistic vision for the city and his willingness to actually venture out and connect with voters in the city has attracted an force of over fifty thousand supporters, many of them young or first-time voters.

Negative Tactics

Yet, Cuomo, 67, isn't giving up. And with the stakes against him, the former governor has resorted to ugly messaging in the final days.

After spending months launching various attacks at Mamdani to see what might resonate, Cuomo has concentrated on targeting the candidate directly. He has labelled his rival, who was born in Uganda to South Asian heritage, an "radical", and appeared on conservative media for an interview with Maria Bartiromo, where Cuomo asserted the city “will not survive” Mamdani as mayor. It reached a nadir recently, when the former governor laughed along and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said the candidate would “cheer” another 9/11-style attack.

Political Landscape

This strategy mirrors much of what the former president, who has sent the military reserves to Washington DC and threatened to take similar action to New York, has said about the progressive, and maybe that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A set of wealthy residents, including some who donated to the Republican in the 2024 election, have pumped millions into trying to elect the independent elected, as other powerful voices have pressured Curtis Sliwa to drop out from the contest.

Political Histories

For the his team, and his billionaire supporters, are concerned, it should never have come to this. When Mamdani, one of one hundred fifty New York state assembly members, launched his mayoral bid in last year, not many had known him, and in reality, barely anyone even noticed.

Cuomo, by contrast, entered smoothly into the race in this year and became the instant favorite. He was the political heavyweight who apparently held all the advantages. The classic political insider, he had married a political dynasty member and served in a Democratic presidency. He became New York governor in 2011, 17 years after his father, the former governor, left office from the identical role.

The progressive, who was voted in to the state legislature in recently, does not have the comparable background. But his commitment to providing free buses and affordable child services – along with the rent control promise – offer a brighter outlook of the future than Cuomo’s dire warnings about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his vow to hire more police officers.

Recent Challenges

Nevertheless, Mamdani has faced some challenges in the final phase, after video emerged suggesting him implying the NYPD and the IDF were connected.

“We have to make clear that when the boot of the police is on your throat, it’s been laced by the IDF,” Mamdani said in the recording, recorded at a DSA convention in recent years. The progressive, a longtime critic of Israel who has said the nation is committing genocide in Gaza, suggested he was criticizing cooperative programs between the city police and IDF.

Powerful Moment

With the election nearing, Mamdani appears to have won sympathy and support, however, for his reaction to his opponent's increasing rhetoric.

Mamdani responded to Cuomo’s terrorism comments in an heartfelt recording. In it, Mamdani recalled how, when he first ran for the legislature, a Muslim uncle suggested to him that he did not have to disclose about his religion. It was a lesson, Mamdani said, that many Muslim New Yorkers had been taught “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the shadows of our community. That it is in those shadows alone where followers of Islam could embrace their true selves, and that if we were to emerge from those shadows, then it is in those shadows that we must leave our faith.”

Speaking to the behavior of his opponents, who has alleged Mamd