Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani has won the New York City’s mayoral election against independent candidate and former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who received backing from President Donald Trump and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa. The 34-year-old, who is of Indian origin, is now the city’s first Muslim and youngest mayor. He will replace Mayor Eric Adams, who dropped his reelection bid in September but remained on the ballot. Meanwhile, in Virginia, Democrat Abigail Spanberger easily won the election for governor, becoming the first woman elected to serve in that role. And in New Jersey, Democrat Mikie Sherrill won the governor's race.
The trio of races offered the Democratic Party a test of differing campaign playbooks a year ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, when control of Congress will be at stake.The newly elected mayor of New York City was born to Indian-American filmmaker Mira Nair and Ugandan scholar Mahmood Mamdani, who was born in Mumbai in 1946.
Trump endorsed Cuomo, the former Democratic governor of New York who’s running for mayor as an independent, on Monday. Cuomo said Trump “is pragmatic" and is telling Republicans the “reality of the situation, which is, if you do not vote, Mamdani is going to win." The Republican president opposes Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, who’s ahead in the polls. Cuomo said voters should look beyond political party and vote for him to save New York City from Mamdani. “It’s about saving the city, and that’s not being overly dramatic," Cuomo said on Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends," which is one of Trump’s favorite TV news programs.