New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, the apparent winner of the Democratic primary, said he’s “not at all” worried about former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-N.Y.) launching an independent bid after conceding to the state lawmaker earlier this week.
Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist, said Thursday that the two have already faced off once and it turned out “pretty well.”
“Ultimately Andrew's decision, or my decision, matters less than the decision that voters already took on Tuesday night, where we won from Bay Ridge to Dyker Heights to Harlem Washington Heights,” Mamdani said Thursday evening during an appearance on CNN’s “OutFront” with host Erin Burnett.
He added, “We saw a mandate delivered for a new generation of leadership, and I am so proud and excited to continue to build on that mandate with an ever expanding coalition, one that has now included the endorsements of Congressman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), of State Senator Brad Holman Siegel (D) and Manhattan Borough President soon to be controller Mark Levine (D).”
Cuomo signaled earlier this week that he's “assessing that landscape” when it comes to an independent bid against incumbent Mayor Eric Adams — who is also running as an independent.
Mamdani held a commanding lead Tuesday in the first round of the city's ranked-choice voting system, with the former governor trailing him 36.4 percent to 43.5 percent, according to unofficial results tabulated by The Hill/Decision Desk HQ.
The state lawmaker has also received support from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) for his campaign that has been largely focused on rent freezes, city-run grocery stores and free childcare.
“What I'm looking at is how to solve the very clear twin crises of affordability when you go to the grocery store and food deserts, which disproportionately impact Black and Brown New Yorkers across the five boroughs,” the Empire State assembly member said.
“I've heard directly multimedia New Yorkers who say, why is it that I can find six fast food restaurants in the five-block radius, but I can't find a place to buy groceries,” he added.
Mamdani also told Burnett on Thursday that he wanted his administration to focus on “Trump-proofing” the Big Apple amid President Trump's efforts to crackdown on illegal immigration and boost enforcement in sanctuary cities.
“We put forward a plan to pay for these and more to start Trump proofing our city through two major revenue streams, increasing the top corporate tax rate of New York to max out of New Jersey, multi million dollars, and increasing income taxes on the top 1 percent of New Yorkers who make a million dollars or more a year my 2 percent,” Mamdani said.
“Both of these things after they come to fruition, you're still paying less than you did before Trump,” he told the host.
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