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New Yorkers will find out who will be their new city leader this election day, in a race that will determine who governs and protects the nation's most populous metropolis at a moment when the former president has threatened to send military troops to the city.

In this context, New York has experienced a mayoral election that has pitted two distinctly opposing Democrats against one another. The election has become an acrimonious showdown, marked by alleged racial bias and Islamophobia, but it is the ideological divide between the two main candidates that could have significant consequences for how the Democratic party fares in next year's midterm elections.

The Rising Progressive

In the progressive corner is the democratic socialist, the 34-year-old progressive candidate whose meteoric rise and people-powered movement has attracted international attention. On the establishment side is the former governor, the ex- Democratic New York governor now campaigning independently – and enjoying the support of wealthy contributors and corporations.

As the election approaches, it is Mamdani, the one-time underdog who defeated Cuomo in the party primary who is solidly positioned as the frontrunner. The candidate, who has run on a agenda of economic justice and promised to halt rent increases for about two million city residents, has outpaced Cuomo by significant margins in every poll taken in October, and it is very much the younger man's race to lose.

The Controversial Campaign

However, Cuomo, who resigned as the state's leader in recent years amid allegations of misconduct, has made it clear he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt manner. He has criticized his opponent's objectives as unrealistic, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a broadcaster made anti-Muslim comments about the candidate, who is Muslim. Two weeks ago, Cuomo was widely condemned as racist after sharing an AI-generated ad that included a slew of racist stereotypes and showed his opponent freeing a convicts.

This represents a rather grubby end to an race that could be key to the path that the Democratic party, struggling in its response to Trump's power moves, adopts in the coming years.

National Implications

Should the progressive wins convincingly, the establishment party leaders who have refused to endorse his campaign will be compelled to address a message that has appealed to voters' frustration at inequality, soaring price rises and the establishment. It would be hard for Chuck Schumer and the House leader not to embrace at least some of the candidate's progressive proposals about economic justice, given the fresh face has created an enthusiasm within the Democratic ranks arguably not witnessed since the Vermont senator campaigned for the White House in 2016.

However, should Cuomo, who had been predicted to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, complete a remarkable riches-to-rags-to-riches win, it could cement the party's existing approach of considered, uninspiring resistance – a strategy that has angered grassroots members. A New York defeat of the progressive's progressive, positive message could persuade party leaders that the wisest course is to stick to the center – even as surveys show the present version of the party is widely disliked across the country.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in New York appear to favor the Mamdani vision. Surveys show that his backers are much more excited about their choice than his opponent's supporters, something that has been evident during the race. Mamdani's engaging content on social media, his optimistic vision for New York and his readiness to actually get out and meet people in the metropolis has attracted an force of more than 50,000 supporters, many of them young or first-time voters.

Personal Attacks

However, the former governor, 67, isn't giving up. And with the stakes against him, the ex-leader has resorted to negative campaigning in the final days.

After spending months launching various attacks at Mamdani to see what might stick, the independent has concentrated on attacking the candidate personally. He has labelled Mamdani, who was born in Uganda to Indian parents, an "radical", and popped up on Fox Business for an interview with Maria Bartiromo, where the candidate asserted New York “will not survive” Mamdani as city leader. It hit bottom recently, when the former governor chuckled and said “that’s another problem” after a radio host said the candidate would “cheer” another 9/11-style incident.

Political Landscape

This strategy mirrors much of what Trump, who has sent the military reserves to Washington DC and warned to take similar action to New York, has said about the progressive, and maybe that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A set of wealthy residents, including some who donated to Trump in the 2024 election, have pumped millions into trying to elect the independent into office, as other influential figures have pressured Curtis Sliwa to drop out from the contest.

Candidate Backgrounds

For the Cuomo camp, and his wealthy backers, are concerned, it should not have reached to this. When Mamdani, one of 150 state legislators, launched his campaign for mayor in October 2024, not many had heard of him, and in reality, few even paid attention.

Cuomo, by comparison, entered smoothly into the contest in March 2025 and became the instant favorite. He was the big beast who apparently held every edge. The quintessential establishment figure, he had married a political dynasty member and served in a Democratic presidency. He became the state's leader in 2011, 17 years after his parent, Mario Cuomo, stepped down from the same position.

The progressive, who was elected to the New York state assembly in 2020, does not have the same political heritage. But his dedication to providing free buses and free childcare – along with the rent control promise – offer a brighter outlook of the future than Cuomo’s pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his vow to hire more police officers.

Campaign Controversies

Nevertheless, Mamdani has faced some challenges in the final phase, after video surfaced suggesting him implying the New York police department and the Israel Defense Forces were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been influenced by the IDF,” Mamdani said in the clip, filmed at a DSA convention in 2023. Mamdani, a longtime critic of Israel who has said the country is committing genocide in Gaza, suggested he was questioning joint training exercises between the NYPD and Israeli forces.

Powerful Moment

As the race closes, the candidate appears to have won empathy and backing, however, for his response to Cuomo’s escalating attacks.

The progressive responded to Cuomo’s terrorism comments in an emotional video. In it, Mamdani recalled how, when he first ran for the legislature, a family member suggested to him that he did not have to disclose about his Muslim faith. It was a realization, Mamdani said, that many Muslim New Yorkers had been told “again and again”: “That security could only be found in the shadows of our community. That it is in those shadows alone where followers of Islam could express their true selves, and that if we were to step out from those shadows, then it is in those shadows that we must leave our faith.”

Speaking to the actions of Cuomo and Sliwa, who has alleged Mamd