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Inside Zohran Mamdani’s strategy to protect his front-runner status
By
Elizabeth Kim
Published Oct 9, 2025
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Elizabeth Kim
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Elizabeth Kim
Published Oct 9, 2025
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This column originally appeared in The Politics Brief, our weekly newsletter on the people, power and policies that shape New Yorkers' lives.
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During the primary, Zohran Mamdani seemed ubiquitous. One moment he was delivering a fiery pep talk to supporters in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The next, he was standing in front of Andrew Cuomo’s luxury Manhattan apartment building, criticizing his opponent and fielding reporters’ questions until they ran out of things to ask. And in the final stretch of the race, he walked the length of Manhattan to the cheers of onlookers.
But with four weeks to go until the election, Mamdani’s campaign is in a new phase as he seeks to protect his front-runner status: risk minimization.
The strategy was on display earlier this week as Mamdani held a press conference in Jackson Heights, Queens, where he unveiled an online affordability calculator. Voters can input their info and learn how much they’d supposedly save under Mamdani’s signature policies of a rent freeze for stabilized tenants, free buses and universal child care. After unveiling the calculator, he took one off-topic question and quickly left as a heckler and Mamdani supporter faced off.
As former Gov. Andrew Cuomo attacks Mamdani as a “champagne socialist” and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa describes his policies as “pie in the sky ideas with no basis in reality,” the 33-year-old assemblymember is running out the clock.
Political experts said it’s a reflection of Mamdani’s double-digit lead in the polls.
“Why not run out the clock when no one else is able to change the game?” said Evan Roth Smith, a Democratic political consultant and pollster.
Sal Albanese, a former city councilmember who supports Mamdani, continued the sports metaphor.
“When you have a big lead, you slow the game down and you don’t commit any turnovers,” he said.
But in practice, that means voters hear few new major policy proposals from Mamdani. Instead, they get light-hearted, low-stakes events.
“What activated his voters in the first place was not the sweeping breadth of his policy agenda or how he’d govern,” Roth Smith said. “It’s his ability to get them excited.”
Mamdani organized a fan meetup at the start of the U.S. Open. He held a scavenger hunt that drew thousands of participants. And last weekend, he held paper shredding events in the Bronx and Harlem.
Mamdani spokesperson Dora Pekec cited those events as examples of the candidate “meeting people where they are.”
“Zohran is building community in real time — and our volunteer army has now grown to 80,000 strong.” Pekec said.
Questions remain about his vision for the country’s largest school system, the qualities he’s looking for in the next police commissioner and how he’d prioritize his signature initiatives, which are expected to cost $7 billion, if he can’t obtain all the necessary funding.
Mamdani, who would be the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century, has also opted not to name people he would appoint to his administration.
Mamdani’s recent rare policy disclosures have resulted in withering attacks from his rivals. His plan to phase out the gifted and talented program for kindergartners became a flashpoint in the race last week after Cuomo and Sliwa announced they’d expand the programs.
Mamdani questioned the practice of sorting students at a young age, but has not addressed the larger issue of how he’d tackle segregation in the city school system.
There are risks to playing it safe. Mayor Eric Adams’ exit from the contest has given Cuomo a fundraising bump that could make him more competitive. There will also be two debates this month that could reshape the contest.
A lot can happen in the final month of a mayoral race. Just ask Cuomo.
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This week in New York politics
- The debate for the New York City public advocate is canceled. Here’s why.
- Voter turnout in New Jersey’s urban areas has plummeted in recent election cycles. Here’s how both parties are mobilizing support.
- Mayor Adams is in Albania this week on a trip sponsored by the Albanian government. Here’s what he’s up to there.
- A Nassau County judge upheld a local law that bars trans women and girls from participating in women’s sports at county-run facilities. Here’s what that means for athletes.
- New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciatarelli wants to get rid of a decades-old affordable housing mandate. Can he do it?
- Gov. Kathy Hochul is hoping to continue preserving access to the COVID-19 vaccine by extending the state’s disaster declaration. Here’s how that works.
- Listen: WNYC/Gothamist reporter Giulia Heyward joined ”The Brian Lehrer Show” to discuss how New York officials are dealing with the Trump administration's attempts to roll back legal protections for the LGBTQ community. Listen here.
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Elizabeth Kim
Elizabeth Kim is a reporter on the People and Power desk who covers mayoral power. She previously covered the pandemic, housing, redevelopment and public spaces. A native of Queens, she speaks fluent Mandarin. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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