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Residents of the Big Apple will find out who will be their new city leader this Tuesday, in a race that will decide who runs and defends the nation's largest city at a time when Donald Trump has vowed to send military troops to the city.

In this context, New York has witnessed a mayoral election that has matched two very different Democratic figures against each other. The election has turned into an acrimonious face-off, marked by accusations of racism and anti-Muslim sentiment, but it is the political differences between the two main contenders 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 Zohran Mamdani, the 34-year-old democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and people-powered movement has attracted international attention. On the establishment side is the former governor, the ex- New York governor now running as an independent – and benefiting from the backing of wealthy contributors and corporations.

As the election approaches, it is Mamdani, the former longshot who defeated Cuomo in the party primary who is firmly installed as the leading candidate. Mamdani, who has run on a agenda of affordability and promised to halt rent increases for about two million city residents, has outpaced his rival by double-digits across all surveys conducted in October, and it is very much the progressive's election to lose.

A Bitter Contest

Yet, the former governor, who resigned as governor in recent years amid accusations of misconduct, has stated clearly he will battle to the end, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt fashion. He has criticized his opponent's objectives as unachievable, and in recent days chuckled along as a radio host made anti-Muslim comments about the candidate, who is a Muslim. Recently, Cuomo was strongly criticized as bigoted after sharing an AI-generated ad that featured a series of racist stereotypes and showed his opponent freeing a convicts.

It's been a rather grubby conclusion to an election that could be critical to the direction that the party, struggling in its response to Trump's power moves, takes in the near future.

National Implications

Should Mamdani secures a clear victory, the party establishment who have declined to support his bid will be compelled to address a message that has appealed to Americans' frustration at economic disparity, soaring price rises and the establishment. It would be difficult for the Senate leader and the House leader not to embrace at least a portion of Mamdani's ambitious ideas about affordability, given the newcomer has generated an enthusiasm within the Democratic ranks perhaps not witnessed since the Vermont senator campaigned for the White House in 2016.

Conversely, should the former governor, who had been predicted to win easily in the June primary, achieve a remarkable riches-to-rags-to-riches win, it could cement the party's existing approach of considered, uninspiring resistance – a tactic that has angered grassroots members. A New York rejection of the progressive's progressive, positive message could persuade party leaders that the wisest course is to stick to the political center – even as surveys show the present version of the Democratic party is widely disliked nationwide.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in the city appear to favor the Mamdani vision. Surveys show that his backers are much more excited about their choice than Cuomo backers, something that has been evident throughout the campaign. Mamdani's snappy videos on digital platforms, his optimistic vision for New York and his willingness to actually venture out and meet people in the metropolis has attracted an army of over fifty thousand volunteers, many of them youth or new participants.

Personal Attacks

However, Cuomo, in his late sixties, isn't giving up. And with the risks against him, the former governor has resorted to negative campaigning in recent weeks.

After spending months throwing basically everything at his opponent to see what might stick, Cuomo has narrowed his focus on attacking Mamdani directly. He has labelled Mamdani, who was of Ugandan origin to Indian parents, an “extremist”, and popped up on conservative media for an interview with a rightwing host, where the candidate asserted the city “will not survive” Mamdani as city leader. It hit bottom last week, when Cuomo chuckled and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said the candidate would “cheer” another terrorist attack.

Political Landscape

This strategy echoes much of what the former president, who has sent the military reserves to the capital and warned to do the same to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and maybe that is expected. A group of billionaire New Yorkers, including some who donated to Trump in the last presidential race, have pumped millions into trying to get Cuomo elected, as other powerful voices have pressured Curtis Sliwa to withdraw from the race.

Candidate Backgrounds

As far as the Cuomo camp, and his wealthy backers, are worried, it should never have come to this. When Mamdani, one of 150 state legislators, launched his mayoral bid in October 2024, few had heard of him, and in reality, barely anyone even noticed.

Cuomo, by comparison, eased his way into the race in March 2025 and became the instant favorite. He was the big beast who apparently held all the advantages. The quintessential political insider, he had wed a Kennedy and worked in a Democratic presidency. He became New York governor in over a decade ago, 17 years after his father, Mario Cuomo, left office from the identical role.

Mamdani, who was voted in to the New York state assembly in 2020, does not have the comparable background. But his dedication to providing no-cost transit and affordable child services – along with the rent control promise – offer a more positive vision of the city's direction than his opponent's dire warnings about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his promise to hire more police officers.

Recent Challenges

Still, the candidate has faced difficulties in the final phase, after footage surfaced appearing to show him suggesting the New York police department and the Israel Defense Forces were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the boot of the police is on your neck, it’s been influenced by the IDF,” Mamdani said in the clip, filmed at a Democratic Socialists of America gathering in 2023. Mamdani, a vocal opponent of the Israeli government who has said the nation is engaging in atrocities in the Palestinian territory, indicated he was criticizing cooperative programs between the city police and IDF.

Powerful Moment

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

The progressive addressed the independent's 9/11 remarks in an heartfelt recording. In it, Mamdani remembered how, when he first ran for the legislature, a Muslim uncle advised to him that he did not have to tell people about his religion. It was a lesson, Mamdani said, that many local Muslims had been taught “again and again”: “That security could only be found in the margins of our community. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where followers of Islam could express their true selves, and that if we were to step out from those seclusion, then it is in those silence that we must set aside our beliefs.”

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