Mamdani rolls up sweeping victories for hard left in New York primaries

▪ Left wins big in New York City 

▪ Trump visits a Senate GOP at odds with him 

▪ Senate passes war powers resolution 

▪ Pulte follows through on critics’ worries

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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) led the hard left wing of the Democratic Party to sweeping victories on Tuesday night as democratic socialist and progressive candidates backed by him rolled to huge wins in several hotly contested Democratic primaries.  

There were questions ahead of the races on whether Mamdani, who was just inaugurated as mayor in January, would pull off the wins by backing upstart Democratic socialist candidates and a former rival against two Democratic incumbents in the House. In a third race, he took on the candidate endorsed by the progressive lawmaker retiring from the seat.  

In the end, the nation’s newest political star became an overnight kingmaker in the country’s biggest city, a showing likely to raise immediate questions about whether Mamdani will seek to extend his reach from New York to the rest of the country.  

The results are also likely to lead to some bitterness in corners of the congressional delegation after Mamdani muscled out one respected incumbent who had backed him in his own mayoral race last year.  

The most stunning result of the evening was democratic socialist and community activist Darializa Avila Chevalier’s upset victory over Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Espaillat has served in the House for a decade and is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. 

Espaillat, who is also the first member of Congress to have formerly been an undocumented immigrant, has long enjoyed strong support from key communities in the district, including Harlem, Washington Heights and the Bronx. But Mamdani’s endorsement of Avila Chevalier and rallies with her as the primary approached appeared to have given her the momentum she needed to win. 

Mamdani’s decision to endorse in the primary put him on the opposite side of the fence as several of his left-wing allies. Progressive Reps. Greg Casar (Texas), Pramila Jayapal (Wash.) and Nydia Velázquez (N.Y.) all backed Espaillat. 

The race came down to the wire, but Avila Chevalier is on track to win by a few points.  

Espaillat had given Mamdani a key endorsement last year, but had initially supported former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) in the Democratic mayoral primary. There has been much talk in the last weeks about whether Espaillat had understood that Mamdani would back him as a result of his endorsement.  

As a result, observers in Washington will be watching to see how warmly Avila Chevalier is received by some of her new Democratic House colleagues.  

Mamdani also won in his proxy battle against the retiring Velázquez, as the one-time allies split on who should succeed the longtime congresswoman. Velázquez backed progressive Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso to be her successor, while Mamdani supported New York Assembly member Claire Valdez, another democratic socialist. 

Despite a contentious race in which Velázquez spoke out against Mamdani for bucking her preferred choice, the primary ultimately wasn’t that close. Valdez cruised to victory; she currently leads Reynoso by more than 20 points. 

The left attained another victory across Brooklyn and lower Manhattan as former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander easily defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) for the party’s nomination. While Lander isn’t a democratic socialist, he ran clearly to Goldman’s left with progressive enthusiasm, including support from Mamdani, behind him. 

The primaries were the first real test of Mamdani’s influence after he pulled off his own major upset to win the Democratic primary and then the general election to lead the country’s largest city.  

As he approaches his six-month mark in office, his approval rating in polls suggests voters in New York are pleased with him so far. Tuesday’s results point to his growing political power as a leader with serious coattails who can push others to victories.  

It also looks like a sign of the growing power of the left in the Democratic Party. 

New York is just the latest big city to see a left-wing wave sweep across it. The primary was held just a week after progressives dominated in all major races in Washington, D.C., setting the stage for the district’s likely first democratic socialist mayor. 

The left wing has also seen a surge in other major cities, like Seattle. Democratic socialist Nithya Raman managed to advance to a runoff in Los Angeles’s mayoral race, spurring leftist hopes of ousting Mayor Karen Bass (D) in November. 

In New York, the victories by the trio of House candidates backed by Mamdani also sent a signal about growing criticism of Israel’s government within the party. Goldman in particular was targeted by the democratic socialist movement over his support for Israel. 

The night wasn’t all bad news for moderates, raising questions about the limits of progressive success outside urban blue strongholds. 

Maryland state Del. Adrian Boafo won the Democratic primary to succeed retiring longtime Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) in a race that fueled a sometimes-intense intraparty battle. Moderate former Rep. Ben McAdams easily won a contested Democratic primary for a likely pickup opportunity in Utah, fending off a progressive in the district based around Salt Lake City. 

Still, the New York results are the latest evidence of the left’s clear ascendance in the big cities. It gives Democrats and Republicans something to mull over as they consider strategies for the 2026........

© The Hill