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Residents of the Big Apple will discover who will be their next mayor this election day, in a contest that will determine who governs and defends the nation's most populous metropolis at a time when the former president has threatened to deploy military troops to the city.

In this context, New York has witnessed a race for mayor that has matched two very different Democratic figures against each other. The contest has turned into an acrimonious face-off, laced with accusations of racism and Islamophobia, but it is the political differences between the two leading candidates that could have major implications for how the party fares in next year's midterm elections.

The Rising Progressive

On the left side is the democratic socialist, the 34-year-old democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and people-powered movement has attracted international attention. Representing the old guard is the former governor, the ex- Democratic New York governor now campaigning independently – and benefiting from the support of ultra-rich donors and big business.

As the election approaches, it is the progressive, the former longshot who defeated his opponent in the party primary who is firmly installed as the leading candidate. Mamdani, who has run on a agenda of affordability and promised to freeze rent for about 2 million city residents, has led Cuomo by significant margins in every poll taken in October, and it is very much the younger man's race to throw away.

A Bitter Contest

Yet, Cuomo, who resigned as the state's leader in 2021 amid accusations of misconduct, has made it clear he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an fair manner. He has criticized Mamdani's objectives as unrealistic, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a broadcaster made Islamophobic remarks about Mamdani, who is a Muslim. Recently, Cuomo was widely condemned as racist after posting an AI-generated ad that featured a series of racist stereotypes and showed Mamdani freeing a group of criminals.

It's been a particularly ugly end to an election that could be key to the path that the Democratic party, floundering in its response to the former president's authoritarian grabs, takes in the coming years.

National Implications

Should the progressive wins convincingly, the party establishment who have declined to support his campaign will be forced to reckon with a platform that has appealed to voters' frustration at inequality, inflation and the establishment. It would be hard for the Senate leader and Hakeem Jeffries not to embrace at least a portion of the candidate's progressive proposals about economic justice, given the newcomer has generated an enthusiasm within the party arguably not seen since Bernie Sanders campaigned for the White House in 2016.

However, if the former governor, who had been expected to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, achieve a remarkable comeback victory, it could cement national Democrats' current model of cautious, lackluster resistance – a strategy that has angered the party base. A NYC rejection of Mamdani's progressive, positive message could persuade party leaders that the best plan is to stick to the center – even as polls show the present version of the party is deeply unpopular nationwide.

Campaign Energy

Voters in the city appear to favor the progressive agenda. Surveys show that Mamdani supporters are far more enthusiastic about their choice than Cuomo backers, something that has been apparent during the race. The candidate's engaging content on social media, his optimistic vision for New York and his willingness to actually get out and connect with voters in the city has drawn an army of more than 50,000 volunteers, many of them youth or first-time voters.

Personal Attacks

Yet, Cuomo, in his late sixties, continues to fight. And with the stakes against him, the former governor has turned to ugly messaging in recent weeks.

After spending months throwing basically everything at his opponent to see what might resonate, Cuomo has concentrated on targeting Mamdani personally. He has labelled Mamdani, who was of Ugandan origin to South Asian heritage, an "radical", and appeared on conservative media for an discussion with a rightwing host, where the candidate claimed the city “will not survive” Mamdani as city leader. It reached a nadir last week, when Cuomo laughed along and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said Mamdani would “cheer” another 9/11-style attack.

Political Landscape

This strategy echoes much of what the former president, who has sent the military reserves to the capital and threatened to take similar action to New York, has said about the progressive, and maybe that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A group of wealthy residents, including some who donated to the Republican in the 2024 election, have invested heavily into trying to get the independent into office, as other powerful voices have urged the Republican candidate to drop out from the contest.

Political Histories

As far as the Cuomo camp, and his billionaire supporters, are concerned, it should never have come to this. When Mamdani, one of one hundred fifty state legislators, started his campaign for mayor in October 2024, not many had heard of him, and in truth, barely anyone even paid attention.

The former governor, by contrast, eased his way into the contest in March 2025 and became the instant favorite. He was the political heavyweight who apparently held every edge. The classic political insider, he had wed a political dynasty member and served in Bill Clinton’s administration. He became the state's leader in 2011, seventeen years after his parent, the former governor, left office from the same position.

Mamdani, who was voted in to the state legislature in 2020, does not have the comparable background. But his dedication to providing free buses and affordable child services – along with the rent control promise – offer a more positive vision of the future than his opponent's pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his promise to increase police presence.

Campaign Controversies

Nevertheless, the candidate has faced difficulties in the final phase, after video surfaced appearing to show him suggesting the New York police department and the IDF were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been influenced by the IDF,” the candidate said in the recording, filmed at a DSA gathering in 2023. The progressive, a longtime critic of Israel who has said the country is engaging in atrocities in Gaza, suggested he was questioning cooperative programs between the city police and IDF.

Emotional Response

With the election nearing, the candidate appears to have won sympathy and support, however, for his response to his opponent's escalating attacks.

Mamdani addressed Cuomo’s 9/11 remarks in an emotional video. In it, Mamdani recalled how, when he first campaigned for the legislature, a family member suggested to him that he did not have to disclose about his Muslim faith. It was a realization, he said, that many local Muslims had been taught “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the shadows of our city. That it is in those shadows alone where Muslims could embrace their true selves, and that if we were to emerge from those shadows, then it is in those silence that we must set aside our beliefs.”

Addressing the behavior of his opponents, who has alleged Mamd