A Democratic Socialist in New York

The Primary Race is Over

It looks like Zohran Mamdani has defeated Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary. Andrew Cuomo has essentially conceded before the ranked choice counting can even being:

“Tonight was not our night. Tonight was Assemblyman Mamdani’s night. He put together a great campaign, and he touched young people and inspired them and got them to come out and vote. And he really ran a highly impactful campaign. I called him, I congratulated him, I applaud him sincerely for his effort.”

I had already seen energy for Mamdani across multiple platforms. I saw David Hogg on TikTok:

I saw bikini models and influencers alike, Susan Sarandon, and many of those who cover the Oscars on Twitter. It was very much the Bernie Sanders/AOC coalition brought back to vibrant life.

Mamdani sounds like a young Barack Obama, equipped with all the promises for young people who still believe there is such a thing as a free ride. He speaks in the language of Gen-Z, like “Free Palestine” and “Defund the Police.”

Free bus rides.
Childcare at no cost.
Freeze the rent for rent-stabilized tenants.
And city-owned, “public option” grocery stores:

And, of course, they do this while also fighting for no secure border, and no mass deportations. So, not only do they expect taxpayers to fund their “my life should be free” lifestyle, but they also expect them to fund the whole world.

When asked by this young reporter why she supports Zorhan, she says he “Stands for Gen-Z beliefs.” The reporter asks her to explain, and her answer is “I’d rather not disclose that.” Translation: Free Palestine.

They are young, activated, and mobilized. They are non-conformist conformists who yearn to express their angst, hopes, dreams, and passions - they are a movement waiting for a leader, and now they’ve found one.

The Democrats' biggest problem is that all they have to sell for ten years is their war on Trump. In Zohran, the young have found someone they believe in. He will sell them exactly what they didn’t even know they wanted, but now they want it really bad. He’s the Music Man.

He inspires them, sells them the dream, and pushes out one beautiful lie after another. What they want is someone who is not white, who sees America the way they do—as an oppressor/oppressed nation with equity as the only solution. And what’s the endgame of equity? Socialism, Marxism, Communism. Some things never die.

What Mamdani does really well, at least from what I’ve seen, is that he is talking about something other than Trump. He’s talking about a path forward for the Left. It might sound like promises he can’t possibly keep, but it’s better than what the Democrats are selling, which is nothing.

Trying to stop it or compete with it is a losing battle. The woke, broke Gen-Z have been raised to think life should be easier than it is. They’ve fled the clutches of their helicopter parents, all of the indoctrination in their schools and universities, a culture that coddles them and protects them from the harshest words, and have been spit out into the dog-eat-dog world.

For years, the Democrats tried to prevent this energy from overtaking their party. They sidelined Bernie, and they’re not exactly thrilled with AOC. They pretended they were moderates and used Joe Biden to present that facade. Now, though, they have no choice but to move out of the way.

The Democrats have nothing to offer now — no leaders, plan, or vision. That’s why it’s so easy for someone like Mamdani to come along and sweep so many up in his fantasy. The only question is, can he deliver on his promises?

Either way, the Republicans should not fear the rise of a guy like Mamdani. He’s a pampered college kid and the son of filmmaker Mira Nair. It’s the Democrats who should be worried. There is no turning back now.