Thanks for this, Micah. I went to a T’ruah (rabbis for human rights) zoom and Jill Jacobs posed a question in a way I hadn’t precisely heard before. What about, she asked, when people start blaming the Jews for cuts in cancer research? Considering “antisemitism” is Trump’s purported reason for making those cuts, it seems plausible. Not only did the AIPAC thing not work, in Shahana’s race (70% win!) as well as in Zohran’s - and she grew up in Brooklyn, so maybe your interesting UWS theory applies to her as well - it may seed more antisemitism. As a friend just quipped (sort of) to me, all those over-the-top statements against Mamdani are really “bad for the Jews.”
Thanks Micah. Two predictions if he gets elected: he will forge a great relationship with most of the Jewish community, and he and the billionaires will get along better than almost anyone expects (watch Bloomberg offer to mentor him...). In both cases, this is because, politics aside, it's in everyone's interest, and because he is *exactly* the kind of guy—smart, ambitious, disciplined, well-mannered, a winner—that the average billionaire would love to hire (in a different league in that regard than de Blasio, for example), or that many people would like their daughter to marry.
Thanks for this, Micah. I think the number of people who have signed up to run with Run For Something since last Tuesday is up to 6,000 as of this morning.
"Other insurgent candidates have toppled establishment stalwarts in recent years – Dave Brat over Eric Cantor, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over Joe Crowley, Jamaal Bowman over Eliot Engel. But in none of those races did the challenger win by substantially changing the make-up of the electorate . . . ."
Those who criticize pro-Palestine protesters might be right in saying "'globalize the intifada' is a childish and stupid slogan best left to over-eager college students;" but rarely do these critics act seriously to propose alternative strategies for halting the genocide as immediately as possible.
Well, this is very interesting. This reader hopes you'll write more on Mamdani's campaign. And hopefully his administration. So many elements to watch. Some questions and comments come to mind.
• What will happen to the age distribution (registration and voting) in the general election?
• There's another reason to encourage early voting. While temperatures might be less discouraging to older folks, November is hurricane season and NOAA is predicting "a 60% chance of an above-normal season."
• Please unpack "Attention as currency." I think there's more to it than I understand.
• Can Mamdami "replicate the Mamdami miracle" in November?
• Will Public Policy Polling's conscious decision not to require people polled to have voted in 2021 have an impact on the practices of other pollsters?
• Are the big donors rethinking anything? Are any of them sticking with Cuomo?
• What is the "hang-glider left"?
• Landers seems a big asset for Mamdani. What role do you expect Lander will play in the Mamdani campaign between now and November?
• Finally, I loved the way Mamdani and Lander each asked their constituents to rank them first and the other guy second. Has anyone figured out 1. how many of the folks who ranked Mamdani first, also ranked Lander second;2. how many who ranked Lander first, also ranked Mamdani second; 3. how many others ranked Mamdani and Lander second?
Shaun, did you watch the video in my "end times" link? He won Brighton Beach by 16 pts. He won College Point in Staten Island by 8 pts. Jamaica (Queens) by 57 pts. In Gravesend (Brooklyn) 32% of the voters were first-timers, most of them drawn into voting by Mamdani. He won the Latino-heavy neighborhood of Washington Heights. I don't think many "elites" live in any of those places. If anything, Cuomo did best with the elites of the Upper East Side.
As for how he spent his money -- you know as well as anyone that regular old TV is more expensive than social media or digital, so I'm not sure what point you think you are making there.
It is clear he did not win the working class even though he was running for the working family party. Re TV vs digital. He didn't spend much at all on digital.... He was elected by elites broadly defined and not by the working class he purports to speak for.
Didn't the NYT's data indicate that he won middle-income voters (the largest group of voters besides renters), which in NYC includes everyone from municipal workers, unionized trade unionists, some small business owners, and nurses and teachers?
It makes sense. As Micah says, people under the age of 40 achieved shockingly impressive turnout in support of him. He did better with the middle class than with any other socioeconomic class. Multiple theories of why are possible, but it's not implausible to conclude that his message about the cost-of-living and concern with economic precarity connected with younger and middle-class voters.
I'm not. But let's use the facts. He was NOT elected by the working class. He was elected by elites and the middle class. Just say it. Don't try to say the working class supported him.. they did not... Own your data. Don't try to make him into something that he is not.
Thanks for this, Micah. I went to a T’ruah (rabbis for human rights) zoom and Jill Jacobs posed a question in a way I hadn’t precisely heard before. What about, she asked, when people start blaming the Jews for cuts in cancer research? Considering “antisemitism” is Trump’s purported reason for making those cuts, it seems plausible. Not only did the AIPAC thing not work, in Shahana’s race (70% win!) as well as in Zohran’s - and she grew up in Brooklyn, so maybe your interesting UWS theory applies to her as well - it may seed more antisemitism. As a friend just quipped (sort of) to me, all those over-the-top statements against Mamdani are really “bad for the Jews.”
Thanks Micah. Two predictions if he gets elected: he will forge a great relationship with most of the Jewish community, and he and the billionaires will get along better than almost anyone expects (watch Bloomberg offer to mentor him...). In both cases, this is because, politics aside, it's in everyone's interest, and because he is *exactly* the kind of guy—smart, ambitious, disciplined, well-mannered, a winner—that the average billionaire would love to hire (in a different league in that regard than de Blasio, for example), or that many people would like their daughter to marry.
Thanks for this, Micah. I think the number of people who have signed up to run with Run For Something since last Tuesday is up to 6,000 as of this morning.
Micah - that's a wonderful, comprehensive piece...Would you be up for letting me repost at FIRST OF THE MONTH?
I agree with every, single word of this! Well done, Micah!
This was the piece I was waiting for. Thank you so much—incredibly helpful.
"Other insurgent candidates have toppled establishment stalwarts in recent years – Dave Brat over Eric Cantor, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over Joe Crowley, Jamaal Bowman over Eliot Engel. But in none of those races did the challenger win by substantially changing the make-up of the electorate . . . ."
There's one who did, though. Donald Trump.
Excellent.
Those who criticize pro-Palestine protesters might be right in saying "'globalize the intifada' is a childish and stupid slogan best left to over-eager college students;" but rarely do these critics act seriously to propose alternative strategies for halting the genocide as immediately as possible.
Well, this is very interesting. This reader hopes you'll write more on Mamdani's campaign. And hopefully his administration. So many elements to watch. Some questions and comments come to mind.
• What will happen to the age distribution (registration and voting) in the general election?
• There's another reason to encourage early voting. While temperatures might be less discouraging to older folks, November is hurricane season and NOAA is predicting "a 60% chance of an above-normal season."
• Please unpack "Attention as currency." I think there's more to it than I understand.
• Can Mamdami "replicate the Mamdami miracle" in November?
• Will Public Policy Polling's conscious decision not to require people polled to have voted in 2021 have an impact on the practices of other pollsters?
• Are the big donors rethinking anything? Are any of them sticking with Cuomo?
• What is the "hang-glider left"?
• Landers seems a big asset for Mamdani. What role do you expect Lander will play in the Mamdani campaign between now and November?
• Finally, I loved the way Mamdani and Lander each asked their constituents to rank them first and the other guy second. Has anyone figured out 1. how many of the folks who ranked Mamdani first, also ranked Lander second;2. how many who ranked Lander first, also ranked Mamdani second; 3. how many others ranked Mamdani and Lander second?
Two things
1) 75 percent of his spend was regular old TV. Not social media or digital media. Regular TV.
2) he was elected by the elites, not the working class.
Make it make sense.
Shaun, did you watch the video in my "end times" link? He won Brighton Beach by 16 pts. He won College Point in Staten Island by 8 pts. Jamaica (Queens) by 57 pts. In Gravesend (Brooklyn) 32% of the voters were first-timers, most of them drawn into voting by Mamdani. He won the Latino-heavy neighborhood of Washington Heights. I don't think many "elites" live in any of those places. If anything, Cuomo did best with the elites of the Upper East Side.
As for how he spent his money -- you know as well as anyone that regular old TV is more expensive than social media or digital, so I'm not sure what point you think you are making there.
It is clear he did not win the working class even though he was running for the working family party. Re TV vs digital. He didn't spend much at all on digital.... He was elected by elites broadly defined and not by the working class he purports to speak for.
Didn't the NYT's data indicate that he won middle-income voters (the largest group of voters besides renters), which in NYC includes everyone from municipal workers, unionized trade unionists, some small business owners, and nurses and teachers?
Nope
Care to elaborate on why it is "nope?"
Here is the New York Times article showing that Zohran did best in election precincts with high numbers of "middle income residents."
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/06/25/nyregion/nyc-mayor-election-results-map-mamdani-cuomo.html
Bingo. He ran to speak for the wc and he lost them. Make it make sense.
It makes sense. As Micah says, people under the age of 40 achieved shockingly impressive turnout in support of him. He did better with the middle class than with any other socioeconomic class. Multiple theories of why are possible, but it's not implausible to conclude that his message about the cost-of-living and concern with economic precarity connected with younger and middle-class voters.
"Middle income" means household income of approx. $50,000 to $100,000 a year. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/zohran-mamdani-nyc-mayoral-primary-coalition-turnout-neighborhoods.html
In any case, who can possibly use the fact that he smashingly won with the middle class as an argument against his legitimacy?
I'm not. But let's use the facts. He was NOT elected by the working class. He was elected by elites and the middle class. Just say it. Don't try to say the working class supported him.. they did not... Own your data. Don't try to make him into something that he is not.