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What’s next in NYC’s mayoral election after Mamdani’s big primary showing
By
David Brand
Published Jun 25, 2025
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By
David Brand
Published Jun 25, 2025
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Zohran Mamdani is on the verge of a historic victory, anointing him as the Democratic candidate for mayor of New York City.
But the fight for Gracie Mansion is just beginning. And Mamdani will face fierce opposition from the current mayor, Eric Adams, the Republican candidate, and possibly former Gov. Andrew Cuomo – again.
For the past three mayoral races, victory in the Democratic primary all but guaranteed a move to Gracie Mansion thanks to the party’s overwhelming majority of registered voters and the weak roster of GOP and independent candidates in the November general election. Not so this year. The general election could now become a five-way race.
Mamdani is poised to secure the Democratic nomination after Cuomo, who hoped to make a political comeback after resigning in 2021, conceded defeat late Tuesday night. Mamdani – a relatively unknown state assemblymember before his campaign – received about 43.5% of the vote. The city’s Board of Elections will still complete the ranked-choice tally on Tuesday, July 1, until a candidate gets above 50%.
Democratic political strategist Trip Yang called Mamdani’s stunning victory “the biggest upset in modern New York City history.”
Zohran Mamdani speaks to supporters during an election night gathering in Queens.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Yang predicted that Mamdani would win the general election in a city where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans eight to one, but said it would be a “chaotic” race.
That’s because Cuomo may stick around. He has registered to run on the Fight and Deliver ballot line and said Tuesday that he is still considering staying in the race. And Adams is running for reelection as an independent after cozying up to the Trump administration.
“I want to look at all the numbers as they come in and analyze the rank choice voting,” Cuomo said in a statement. “I will then consult with my colleagues on what is the best path for me to help the City of New York.”
If he does decide to continue, Cuomo is set to battle Adams for moderate voters in places like Eastern Queens, Southern Brooklyn and Staten Island.
Adams, for his part, has signaled he’ll run on one of two ballot lines: “EndAntiSemitism” or “Safe&Affordable.”
Then there’s the Republican nominee: Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa is back on the GOP ballot line four years after Adams trounced him in the general election. He received the nomination without opposition and did not have a primary on Tuesday.
Former federal prosecutor Jim Walden rounds out the five candidates who could appear on the general election ballot. Walden, a defense attorney, is running a centrist campaign on yet another independent line.
“The real campaign for Mayor of New York City begins today,” Walden said in a statement Tuesday.
And unlike the ranked choice primary, the winner of the general election will be determined simply by who gets a plurality of the votes. With so many candidates, it’s likely many more surprises are in store.
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Politics
Zohran Mamdani
new york city
David Brand
David is a reporter covering housing for Gothamist and WNYC. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 908-310-3960.
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