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New Yorkers will find out the identity of their new city leader this election day, in a race that will determine who runs and defends the country's most populous metropolis at a moment when the former president has threatened to send armed forces to the city.

In this context, New York has witnessed a mayoral election that has pitted two very different Democrats against one another. The election has turned into an increasingly bitter showdown, laced with accusations of racism and anti-Muslim sentiment, but it is the ideological divide between the two leading candidates that could have major implications for how the Democratic party fares in next year's congressional races.

The Rising Progressive

On the left side is the democratic socialist, the 34-year-old democratic socialist whose meteoric rise and people-powered movement has attracted global notice. Representing the old guard is the former governor, the ex- New York governor now running as an independent – and enjoying the backing of wealthy contributors and big business.

As the election approaches, it is the progressive, the former longshot who beat his opponent in the Democratic primary who is solidly positioned as the leading candidate. Mamdani, who has campaigned on a platform of economic justice and pledged to halt rent increases for about 2 million New Yorkers, has outpaced his rival by double-digits across all surveys conducted in the fall, and it is very much the younger man's election to lose.

A Bitter Contest

Yet, Cuomo, who resigned as governor in 2021 amid accusations of sexual harassment, has made it clear he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt manner. He has criticized Mamdani's goals as unachievable, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a broadcaster made anti-Muslim comments about Mamdani, who is a Muslim. Two weeks ago, Cuomo was strongly criticized as bigoted after sharing an artificial intelligence video that featured a series of racist stereotypes and showed Mamdani freeing a convicts.

This represents a particularly ugly end to an election that could be key to the direction that the Democratic party, struggling in its response to the former president's authoritarian grabs, takes in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

Should the progressive secures a clear victory, the party establishment who have declined to support his bid will be forced to reckon with a platform that has appealed to Americans' frustration at inequality, soaring price rises and the establishment. It would be difficult for Chuck Schumer and the House leader not to adopt at least a portion of Mamdani's ambitious ideas about economic justice, given the fresh face has created an excitement within the party arguably not witnessed since the Vermont senator campaigned for the White House eight years ago.

Conversely, should the former governor, who had been expected to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, achieve a remarkable comeback win, it could reinforce the party's existing approach of cautious, uninspiring opposition – a strategy that has infuriated grassroots members. A NYC rejection of the progressive's progressive, positive message could persuade party leaders that the best plan is to stick to the political center – even as polls show the present version of the Democratic party is deeply unpopular nationwide.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in the city appear to favor the Mamdani vision. Polls show that his backers are far more enthusiastic about their candidate than his opponent's supporters, something that has been evident during the race. The candidate's engaging content on digital platforms, his optimistic vision for New York and his willingness to actually venture out and meet people in the metropolis has drawn an force of over fifty thousand volunteers, many of them youth or first-time voters.

Negative Tactics

However, Cuomo, 67, continues to fight. And with the stakes stacked against him, the ex-leader has resorted to negative campaigning in the final days.

Following extensive launching various attacks at Mamdani to see what might stick, the independent has concentrated on targeting the candidate directly. He has called his rival, who was born in Uganda to South Asian heritage, an “extremist”, and appeared on conservative media for an discussion with a rightwing host, where the candidate claimed New York “will not survive” his opponent as mayor. 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 terrorist incident.

Campaign Dynamics

The line of attack echoes much of what the former president, who has sent the military reserves to Washington DC and warned to take similar action to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and maybe that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A set of billionaire New Yorkers, including some who contributed to the Republican in the last presidential race, have pumped millions into trying to get Cuomo elected, as other influential figures have pressured Curtis Sliwa to drop out from the race.

Political Histories

For the Cuomo camp, and his wealthy backers, are worried, it should never have come to this. When the assemblyman, one of 150 state legislators, launched his campaign for mayor in October 2024, few had known him, and in reality, barely anyone even noticed.

The former governor, by comparison, eased his way into the race in this year and became the immediate frontrunner. He was the big beast who apparently held every edge. The classic establishment figure, he had married a Kennedy and worked in a Democratic presidency. He assumed office as New York governor in 2011, seventeen years after his father, the former governor, left office from the same position.

The progressive, who was voted in to the New York state assembly in 2020, does not have the same political heritage. But his dedication to providing no-cost transit and affordable child services – along with the freeze-the-rent pledge – present a brighter outlook of the future than Cuomo’s pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and rising criminal activity, and his promise to increase police presence.

Recent Challenges

Still, the candidate has faced difficulties in recent days, after footage surfaced appearing to show him implying the NYPD and the Israel Defense Forces were connected.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the police is on your neck, it’s been influenced by the IDF,” Mamdani said in the recording, recorded at a DSA convention in 2023. The progressive, a longtime critic of Israel who has said the country is committing genocide in Gaza, suggested he was criticizing cooperative programs between the city police and Israeli forces.

Powerful Moment

With the election nearing, Mamdani appears to have won empathy and backing, however, for his response to Cuomo’s increasing rhetoric.

Mamdani responded to Cuomo’s terrorism comments in an emotional video. In it, Mamdani recalled how, when he first ran for state assembly, a family member advised to him that he did not have to disclose about his religion. It was a lesson, Mamdani said, that many local Muslims had been told “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the shadows of our community. That it is in those shadows alone where Muslims could express their full identities, and that if we were to emerge from those seclusion, then it is in those silence that we must leave our faith.”

Speaking to the actions of his opponents, who has alleged Mamd