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New Yorkers will find out who will be their next mayor this Tuesday, in a race that will decide who governs and protects the nation's largest city at a moment when the former president has vowed to send military troops to the urban center.

In this context, New York has witnessed a mayoral election that has pitted two distinctly opposing Democrats against each other. The contest has become an acrimonious face-off, marked by accusations of racism and Islamophobia, but it is the ideological divide between the two leading candidates that could have major implications for how the Democratic party fares in next year's midterm elections.

The Rising Progressive

In the progressive corner is Zohran Mamdani, the young democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and grassroots campaign has attracted global notice. On the establishment side is Andrew Cuomo, the former New York governor now campaigning independently – and benefiting from the backing of wealthy contributors and corporations.

With days to go, it is Mamdani, the one-time underdog who beat Cuomo in the Democratic primary who is solidly positioned as the frontrunner. The candidate, who has campaigned on a agenda of affordability and promised to freeze rent for about two million city residents, has outpaced Cuomo by double-digits across all surveys conducted in the fall, and it is very much the progressive's election to throw away.

The Controversial Campaign

However, Cuomo, who stepped down as governor in recent years amid allegations of sexual harassment, has made it clear he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt manner. He has criticized his opponent's objectives as unachievable, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a broadcaster made Islamophobic remarks about the candidate, who is Muslim. Two weeks ago, Cuomo was widely condemned as racist after sharing an AI-generated ad that included a slew of racial caricatures and showed Mamdani releasing a group of criminals.

It's been a rather grubby conclusion to an election that could be key to the direction that the Democratic party, floundering in its reaction to Trump's authoritarian grabs, adopts in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

Should Mamdani secures a clear victory, the party establishment who have declined to support his campaign will be compelled to address a message that has resonated with voters' frustration at economic disparity, soaring price rises and the establishment. It would be difficult for Chuck Schumer and the House leader not to adopt at least some of Mamdani's ambitious ideas about economic justice, given the fresh face has created an enthusiasm within the party perhaps not seen since the Vermont senator ran for president eight years ago.

Conversely, should the former governor, who had been predicted to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, achieve a surprising riches-to-rags-to-riches win, it could reinforce national Democrats' existing approach of considered, lackluster opposition – a strategy that has infuriated grassroots members. A New York rejection of Mamdani's progressive, positive message could persuade Schumer and Jeffries that the best plan is to stick to the political center – even as polls show the present version of the party is widely disliked nationwide.

Campaign Energy

Voters in New York seem to prefer the progressive agenda. Surveys show that Mamdani supporters are much more excited about their candidate than his opponent's supporters, something that has been evident throughout the campaign. The candidate's engaging content on social media, his hopeful outlook for New York and his willingness to actually venture out and meet people in the metropolis has drawn an army of more than 50,000 supporters, many of them youth or new participants.

Personal Attacks

Yet, Cuomo, 67, continues to fight. And with the risks stacked against him, the ex-leader has turned to ugly messaging in the final days.

Following extensive throwing basically everything at his opponent to see what might stick, Cuomo has concentrated on targeting the candidate directly. He has labelled his rival, who was of Ugandan origin to Indian parents, an "radical", and appeared on conservative media for an interview with Maria Bartiromo, where Cuomo claimed the city “will not survive” his opponent as city leader. It hit bottom recently, when Cuomo laughed along and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said Mamdani would “cheer” another 9/11-style attack.

Political Landscape

The line of attack mirrors much of what Trump, who has sent the national guard to Washington DC and threatened to take similar action to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and perhaps that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A set of wealthy residents, including some who contributed to the Republican in the 2024 election, have pumped millions into trying to elect Cuomo elected, as other powerful voices have urged the Republican candidate to withdraw from the race.

Candidate Backgrounds

For the Cuomo camp, and his wealthy backers, are worried, it should not have reached to this point. When the assemblyman, one of 150 state legislators, started his mayoral bid in October 2024, not many had known him, and in truth, barely anyone even paid attention.

The former governor, by contrast, eased his way into the race in this year and became the instant favorite. He was the big beast who apparently held every edge. The quintessential political insider, he had married a political dynasty member and worked in a Democratic presidency. He became the state's leader in 2011, seventeen years after his father, Mario Cuomo, stepped down from the identical role.

The progressive, who was voted in to the New York state assembly in recently, does not have the comparable background. But his dedication to providing no-cost transit and free childcare – along with the rent control promise – present a brighter outlook of the future than Cuomo’s dire warnings about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his promise to hire more police officers.

Recent Challenges

Still, Mamdani has faced difficulties in the final phase, after footage surfaced suggesting him suggesting the New York police department and the IDF were connected.

“We have to make clear that when the boot of the police is on your throat, it’s been laced by the IDF,” the candidate said in the recording, recorded at a Democratic Socialists of America gathering in recent years. The progressive, a longtime critic of the Israeli government who has said the nation is committing genocide in the Palestinian territory, indicated he was questioning joint training exercises between the NYPD and Israeli forces.

Powerful Moment

With the election nearing, Mamdani seems to have gained empathy and backing, however, for his reaction to Cuomo’s increasing rhetoric.

The progressive addressed Cuomo’s terrorism comments in an heartfelt recording. In it, Mamdani remembered how, when he first ran for state assembly, a family member suggested to him that he did not have to disclose about his religion. It was a lesson, he said, that many Muslim New Yorkers had been told “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the margins of our community. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where Muslims could express their full identities, and that if we were to step out from those shadows, then it is in those shadows that we must set aside our beliefs.”

Addressing the behavior of his opponents, who has alleged Mamd