Mamdani’s Pro-Palestinian Views Aren't Hurting Him

Zohran Mamdani is likely to become New York City’s next mayor, unless he makes a major mistake. He holds a huge lead over Andrew Cuomo, and the other two candidates are trailing even farther behind. Mamdani’s popularity reflects his political gifts and his policy proposals, of course. But he has also benefited from profound shifts in New Yorkers’ attitudes toward Israel and Palestinians as well as in the city’s demographics.

Many New Yorkers are ready to accept a Muslim as mayor. Furthermore, many voters sympathize more with Palestinians than with Israel, according to a recent New York Times/Siena poll. They agree with Mamdani’s pro-Palestinian views. Others do not seem to hold Mamdani’s criticism of Israel against him.

In fact, Mamdani has won 30% support among Jewish New Yorkers, which is slightly more than either Mayor Eric Adams or Cuomo has, even though they are fervent supporters of Israel. Adams and Cuomo have harshly criticized Mamdani for his pro-Palestinian views, but those tactics do not seem to have hurt his candidacy. Their attacks may have backfired instead, particularly among younger voters.

Huge Lead Over Cuomo, Adams

Mamdani enjoys a 22-point lead over Cuomo, 46% to 24%, based on the NYT/Siena poll. To put it another way, Mamdani has almost twice as much support as the former governor. Curtis Sliwa, the Republican candidate and the founder of the Guardian Angels, has 15%. Mayor Adams, despised by most New Yorkers, languishes at 9%. With less than seven weeks left in the race, the odds favor Mamdani, especially since he faces such a divided field.

Many members of the NYC elite are terrified by the thought of a democratic socialist—who wants to raise taxes on the wealthy and companies—running the city. Some major real estate investors and hedge fund managers have talked with the Trump administration about strategies to consolidate the opposition to Mamdani behind Cuomo, by inducing Adams and Sliwa to drop out of the race.

However, Sliwa has adamantly rejected any suggestions that he withdraw. President Donald Trump reportedly tried to entice Adams to quit the race, by offering to nominate him ambassador to Saudi Arabia. However, those negotiations apparently fizzled out. Adams is staying in the race, despite his miserable poll numbers.

Voters give Mamdani high marks for his character and willingness to engage with voters on the streets. Cuomo has long had a reputation as a bully, and he has never recovered from the accusations of sexual harassment. His uninspiring and mean-spirited campaign has alienated many voters. In a sharp contrast with Mamdani, during the primary campaign Cuomo avoided impromptu meetings with voters.

Adams has presided over one of the most corrupt administrations in the city’s long, storied history of graft. Like his predecessor, Bill de Blasio, Adams is more of a talker than a doer. He has accomplished remarkably little as mayor.

Zohran Mamdani/photo: Getty Images

Hochul Endorsement

The NYT/Siena poll results were released on September 9. To add to Cuomo’s woes, on September 14, Governor Kathy Hochul endorsed Mamdani, in an op-ed in the New York Times. Although Hochul noted that she and Mamdani held different views on some issues, she added: “But I am confident that he has the courage, urgency and optimism New York City needs to lead it through the challenges of this moment.”

Hochul also stressed that she and Mamdani would stand together in resisting the Trump Administration’s moves against the city. That was a dig against Adams and Cuomo, who have both sought help from Trump. The mayor has cooperated with ICE in return for the Department of Justice’s dropping corruption charges against him. Cuomo spoke with Trump about ways to boost his campaign by getting Sliwa and Adams to withdraw from the race.

Hochul is not a popular governor, and she will probably face a tough fight for re-election next year. A centrist Democrat from the Buffalo area, she has not built a strong base of support in New York City or among younger, progressive voters. She endorsed Mamdani at least partly in a bid to gain more support with these voters.

Nevertheless, Hochul’s seal of approval may help Mamdani with moderate voters who are concerned about his lack of experience and his more outlandish policy proposals. Hochul’s endorsement is bad news for Cuomo, since she served as his lieutenant governor for two terms.

A Boost from Heastie

On September 17, Mamdani received another key endorsement, from Carl Heastie, the powerful Democratic Speaker of the State Assembly. His announcement could help Mamdani even more than Hochul’s endorsement. Heastie is based in New York City (he represents a district in the Bronx), he is a moderate, and he is Black. In the primary campaign Cuomo attracted more Black voters, but Mamdani has subsequently built a lead among them. Heastie’s endorsement could help Mamdani with this important bloc of voters.

Winning Voters’ Trust on Key Issues

By wide margins, voters trust Mamdani over Cuomo on the three key issues that have dominated the campaign:

· Affordability—49% to 23%

· Housing—46% to 24%

· Taxes and Spending—41% to 30%

These results reflect Mamdani’s relentless focus on these topics and his specific proposals to address them. Although some of Mamdani’s ideas are highly debatable, they have convinced voters that he takes their concerns very seriously.

Mamdani’s proposal to freeze increases on rent-stabilized apartments for a year is a huge winner with the electorate; 70% of voters support this idea. Furthermore, as mayor, Mamdani would have the authority to implement this proposal on his own. While Bill de Blasio was mayor, he oversaw three rent freezes.

Increasing taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers is also popular with voters. However, Mamdani needs to get approval from both houses of the state legislature and the governor to raise city income taxes. Speaker Heastie supports imposing a tax on “the rich”, but Governor Hochul has poured very cold water on that idea.

Voters also have slightly more confidence in Mamdani’s ability to deal with crime and the Trump Administration.

New Yorkers are less enthusiastic about some of Mamdani’s other ideas. Almost 60% of likely voters oppose his proposal to make buses free for everyone. More than half of his own supporters do not expect him to accomplish everything he has promised.

Attacking Mamdani’s Pro-Palestinian Stance

Cuomo and Adams have frequently criticized Mamdani for his pro-Palestinian views, calling him antisemitic and a “terrorist sympathizer”. They are playing on anti-Muslim prejudices; both accusations are false. Mamdani has not expressed support for Hamas, and he has deplored the deaths of the Israelis killed in the October 7 massacres.

Mamdani has called September 11, 2001 “one of the saddest days in our city’s history”. He has denounced antisemitism. However, Mamdani has often criticized the Israeli government’s bombing of Gazan civilians and its restrictions on allowing humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, calling its approach “genocide”.

Mamdani refused for some time to disavow the controversial phrase “globalize the intifada”, although he did not use it himself. Under pressure from Heastie, among others, Mamdani eventually distanced himself from the slogan, which offends many Jewish voters.

Somewhat surprisingly, Cuomo and Adams’ attacks on Mamdani’s pro-Palestinian stance have not resonated with a large slice of the electorate.

Voters’ Views on Palestinians Shift

About 60% of NYC Democrats are pro-Palestinian rather than pro-Israel, according to the NYT/Siena poll. Furthermore, 51% of NYC voters think that criticizing Israel is not antisemitic, compared to 31% who think it is. Consequently, many voters may not be upset by Mamdani’s opposition to the war in Gaza.

There is a sharp generational divide on views regarding the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Young voters, a key constituency for Mamdani, are much more sympathetic to Palestinians than older voters are. Voters 18 to 44 years old overwhelmingly favor the Palestinian side (ranging from 60% to 70% in support), and those aged 45-64 also do, though by a narrower margin. Israel enjoys greater support among voters who are 65 and older, but even they are split, with 40% pro-Israel to 30% pro-Palestinian.

The change in New Yorkers’ attitudes toward the conflict is not unique; this is part of a national trend.

Mamdani has benefited from this shift in voters’ attitudes. About 40% of all NYC voters prefer his approach to the Israel/Palestinian conflict, compared to 17% for Cuomo and 10% for Adams.

Changing Demographics

Mamdani’s candidacy is probably helped by a major shift in New York City’s demographics. There are about 960,000 Jewish New Yorkers, or 11% of the city’s population. However, the Muslim population has grown rapidly recently. Although there are no definitive numbers, an estimated 750,000 Muslims live in the city. They represent 9% of its residents.

Mamdani has not emphasized his Muslim faith on the campaign trail, although he has referred to it occasionally. Mamdani has visited many mosques and Islamic centers during the race, just as candidates in the past have visited churches (notably Black churches) and synagogues to connect with different blocs of voters.

As always, New York City is changing and evolving.

The Wall Street Democrat