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a few weeks before their surprise defeat Zohran Mamdani In the Democratic mayoral primary, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo put forward a political calculation long accepted as fact in New York: “Being a Democrat,” he said, “is synonymous that you support israel,
Mamdani, who will be the city’s first Muslim mayor, may be on the verge of breaking that tradition.
A staunch supporter of Palestinian rights, the 34-year-old democratic socialist has accused Israel of genocide in Gaza, backed a movement to boycott the country’s goods and promised to make the prime minister benjamin netanyahu If he sets foot he will be arrested new york,
In the city with the largest Jewish population outside Israel, where mayors have long been expected to make lengthy pilgrimages to the Jewish state, Mamdani proudly identifies as an “anti-Semite.” While he says he supports Israel’s right to exist, he describes any state or social hierarchy that favors Jews over others as inconsistent with his belief in universal human rights.
Mamdani often points out that city officials have no interference in American foreign policy. And he has consistently and forcefully rejected claims that his criticism of Israel amounts to anti-Semitism, promising to work closely with those with whom he disagrees if elected.
But as Cuomo and others frame the race as a referendum on Israel, political observers say Mamdani’s victory could extend far beyond New York, allowing Democrats to speak out on an issue long viewed as the third rail of politics.
Basil Smikle, former chief executive of the state Democratic Party, said, “This race is indicative of where the party goes in terms of support for Israel — and that’s causing a lot of panic.” “We’re stepping into territory where we’ve never really dealt with before.”
The ‘most important’ issue in the race
From the beginning, Cuomo has staked much of his political comeback on portraying himself as a defender of Jewish security in both New York and the Middle East.
Shortly before launching his campaign, he announced that he had joined Netanyahu’s legal defense team to defend the prime minister against war crimes charges brought by the International Criminal Court. Cuomo called anti-Semitism the “most important” issue facing the city and described himself as a “highly aggressive supporter of Israel.” Mamdani’s own views, he said, pose an “existential” threat to New Yorkers.
Other candidates quickly rushed to burnish their pro-Israel credentials, including Mayor Eric Adams, who announced he would run on the “endantisemitism” ballot measure.
As they competed for support among Brooklyn’s chief rabbis and other Jewish voters, each equated opposition to Palestinian rights to support for terrorism and endorsed a controversial definition of anti-Semitism that includes some criticism of Israel.
Days before leaving last month, Adams shared a smiling photo with Netanyahu.
According to longtime Democratic strategist Elissa Cass, this strategy appears to be deliberately ignorant of polls that show growing public disapproval in the US over Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza.
He said that a handful of deep-pocketed campaign donors and a few urban news outlets “created a perception that you could never question Israel, and that perception was completely disconnected from reality.”
“The unique mobility in New York was masking a broader, mass migration in public opinion that had been going on for some time,” Cass said. “They didn’t realize that the ground beneath them had shifted.”
changing political winds
Yet, with less than two weeks left before the election, Cuomo has only addressed the issue, claiming in Wednesday’s debate that Mamdani had “fanned the fire of hatred against the Jewish people.”
Broadsides has garnered support from pro-Israel donors such as the Anti-Defamation League and hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman. But there is little sign that this strategy is working among ordinary New Yorkers.
In a Quinnipiac University poll conducted in early October, 41% of likely New York City voters said Mamdani’s views on Israel were closest to their views, compared to 26% for Cuomo.
A Fox News poll conducted in mid-October found that 50% of registered voters in New York said they identified more with the Palestinians in the Middle East conflict, while 44% identified more with the Israelis.
Those numbers have alarmed some Jewish leaders, who have placed at least some of the blame on Mamdani. In an open letter circulated this week, 650 rabbis warned that his candidacy had contributed to “the increase in anti-Zionism and its political normalization.”
Amy Spitalnick, chief executive of the Jewish Council on Public Affairs, cautioned against making a direct link between Mamdani’s popularity and his pro-Palestine stance.
He said most Jewish voters remain strong supporters of Israel, lamenting the fact that neither Mamdani nor Cuomo “expressed the liberal nuanced view of most New York Jews.”
He said, “Mamdani’s views on Israel matter, but it is not the issue on which the majority of New Yorkers are voting.” “If he wins, it will be because he has run a compelling campaign to make this city more affordable.”
Weaponization and authenticity
In debates and interviews, where Mamdani often faces a barrage of questions about his views on the Israel-Hamas war, he quickly shifts his focus to his platform, which includes freezing rents for regulated apartments, making buses free, and reducing the cost of child care.
“I have repeatedly condemned Hamas,” a frustrated Mamdani said during a debate last week. “It will never be enough for Andrew Cuomo.”
At Wednesday’s debate, Mamdani again talked about his proposal to increase funding for hate crime prevention and his recent outreach to Jewish voters over fears of anti-Semitism.
He said, “They deserve a leader who takes this seriously, who uproots it from these five boroughs, not one who weaponizes it as a means of gaining political advantage on the debate stage.”
But despite months of backlash, Mamdani has remained steadfast in his core criticism of Israel. In his statement on the anniversary of the October 7 attack on Israel, he condemned both the “horrific war crimes” of Hamas and Israel’s occupation, apartheid and “genocidal war” in Gaza.
According to Peter Feld, a progressive political consultant, whether or not those views were shared by the broader electorate, consistency of message served as a “proxy for authenticity” in the minds of voters.
And it offered a sharp contrast with not only Cuomo, but other pro-Israel Democrats, including Senator Chuck Schumer of New York and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Both have spent weeks deflecting questions about whether they would support Mamdani, indicating they were still meeting and talking with the Democratic nominee.
Cass scoffed, “The Allies divided Europe in short meetings.” “At this point, they’re ignoring the majoritarian view of their voters, and there’s no way around it.”
In recent weeks, Feld said he has spoken to several potential candidates who are assessing primary challenges to other pro-Israel Democratic incumbents.
“Mamdani changed the way candidates and donors think about what is politically possible,” Feld said. “We’ve seen that taking the side of Palestine instead of Israel doesn’t make you radioactive. It shows voters that you’ll stick to your principles.”