Mayor Zohran Mamdani flexes influence in New York City’s congressional primaries with 3 big wins, CBS News projects
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, in an effort to get more like-minded political allies in Washington, endorsed three left-of-center candidates in the congressional Democratic primaries covering the city, including two who were running against sitting congressmen.
CBS News projected all three — Brad Lander, Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier — will win their primaries.
Warning sign for establishment politicians
It was a major victory for Mamdani, a democratic socialist. When campaigning Tuesday, Mamdani said it was not a question of electing more Democrats, it was a question of electing “better Democrats.”
CBS News New York political reporter Marcia Kramer says that in effect, he was tapping into recent a poll finding that New York voters were fed up with politics as usual and were ready to clean house.
Half of the respondents in a poll by the Honan Strategy Group said they favored electing a new generation of younger, more progressive candidates willing to challenge the party establishment.
Kramer says these victories are blaring warning sign for establishment politicians like Gov. Kathy Hochul and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. It means voters are tired of the dysfunction in Washington and the inability of Democrats to stand up to what some see as the excesses of the Trump administration.
It also means that some long-serving politicians — like Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who has been in the Senate for 27 years — will have a target on his back when he is up for reelection in 2028.
It could provide the impetus for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who is projected to win her primary, to challenge Schumer if he decides to seek reelection.
What does this mean for November?
As Democrats hope to flip the House in November, Republicans will latch on to the party’s turn to the left, use it to shore up their base, and maybe pick up some votes from moderate Democrats.
Another question is whether the move to the left in New York City will affect Hochul’s bid for reelection. Her Republican opponent, Bruce Blakeman, will try to pin her to Mamdani in the hope of picking up moderate Democratic votes.
Hochul and establishment Democrats did have one victory, backing Assemblyman Micah Lasher, who is projected to be replacing retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler on the ballot.
7th Congressional District
CBS News projected a win for Valdez in the Democratic primary in the 7th Congressional District, which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens.
Valdez topped Vichal Kumar, Antonio Reynoso and Julie Won in the race to replace Rep. Nydia Velázquez, who is retiring.
Velázquez had endorsed Reynoso.
10th Congressional District
Lander, the former city comptroller, won the Democratic primary in the 10th Congressional District over incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman, CBS News projects.
This comes after Mamdani and Lander cross-endorsed each other during the mayoral Democratic primary last year, which used a ranked choice voting system.
The 10th Congressional District includes Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn.
13th Congressional District
CBS News projects Chevalier has won the Democratic primary in New York’s 13th Congressional District, beating incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat, in perhaps the most shocking result of the evening.
Espaillat, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, had held the seat since 2017. He had been endorsed by Hochul, Jeffries and Velázquez as well as New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin.
Theo Chino-Tavarez and Oscar Romero were also in the race. The 13th Congressional District includes Washington Heights and Harlem.
