In the eyes and barbed language of his enemies, Zohran Mamdani, the front-runner for mayor of New York City, is the Democratic nominee in name only.
President Trump has called him a “100 percent communist lunatic.” Former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who is running as a third-party candidate and polling second, has sought to highlight Mr. Mamdani’s roots as a democratic socialist, suggesting that his positions are “dangerous” for New Yorkers.
Mr. Cuomo used both of his appearances on Fox News last week to criticize Mr. Mamdani’s left-leaning views, warning that they would be a “death knell for New York City.”
“New York City people are not socialists,” Mr. Cuomo said.
Neither, actually, is Mr. Mamdani: He is a democratic socialist, which means his beliefs are similar to those of socialists but not exactly the same. He is a member of both the national Democratic Socialists of America and its local New York City chapter.
On Thursday, however, Mr. Mamdani said that his mayoral platform was not the same as that of either the local or national D.S.A.
Need more clarity? Here’s a breakdown of how socialism and democratic socialism work, and where Mr. Mamdani fits in.
What is socialism anyway?
Socialism is a doctrine that calls for public control of property and natural resources. The control of resources is then directed toward the benefit of all members of society. Socialism stands in direct opposition to capitalism, a system in which private individuals own the means of production.
There are different types of socialism and different ideas about the extent of public ownership of property and whether those assets should be controlled via a centralized authority or if more decisions should be made at the local level. Marxist socialists believe that a society can only arrive at socialism through a clash between economic classes.
The D.S.A.’s national chapter describes democratic socialism as a “system where ordinary people have a real voice in our workplaces, neighborhoods and society.” In order to achieve those goals, citizens must “collectively own” the means of economic production, including transportation and energy resources.
Democratic socialists share a common goal of wielding resources to help the greatest number of people, but agreement on how those resources are handled must be determined through a democratic process, said Susan Kang, an associate professor of political science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a D.S.A. member.
“Democratic socialism is trying to get a lot of buy-in, Democratic support, majoritarian support for policies that seek to meet the needs of people,” Ms. Kang said.
Does Mr. Mamdani hold socialist views?
Mr. Mamdani, a state assemblyman, has based his campaign on making New York City more affordable, vowing to make buses free and extending free child care, among other similar proposals.
Asked if Mr. Mamdani considered himself a socialist, a campaign spokeswoman said on Friday that he had consistently identified as a democratic socialist.
Mr. Mamdani’s plan to pay for his proposals borrows from a traditional Democratic method: increase taxes on the rich. He would also increase the top corporate tax rate, but has proposed nothing remotely close to a socialist-like takeover of private companies.
The closest Mr. Mamdani gets to socialism is in his belief in treating people more equitably.
Asked recently about what democratic socialism meant to him, Mr. Mamdani, in a CNN interview, referenced the words of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and said “there must be a better distribution of wealth for all of God’s children in this country. And that is what I am focused on is, dignity and taking on income inequality.”
Mr. Mamdani’s rivals beg to differ.
The New York City D.S.A. describes itself as a branch of the national group, which says it is the “largest socialist organization” in the country. Mr. Mamdani is a member of both.
He joined the New York City D.S.A. around 2017 when he worked on the City Council campaign of the Rev. Khader El-Yateem. And even before he entered the mayor’s race, Mr. Mamdani’s stature was such that he spoke at the national D.S.A. convention in 2023.
The New York D.S.A. also endorsed Mr. Mamdani for mayor and in his successful run for the Queens Assembly seat he currently holds. In the State Legislature, he was part of the D.S.A.’s eight-member “Socialists in Office” group.
His established ties to the D.S.A. have been attacked by his rivals, especially Mr. Cuomo, who has challenged Mr. Mamdani to clarify whether he supports the national group’s platform.
“Do you believe what the D.S.A. charter says when they say close prisons? Do you believe what the D.S.A. charter says when it says close jails?” Mr. Cuomo said at a news conference on Thursday. “Do you believe what the D.S.A. charter says when it says gradually reduce the police budget to zero? Yes or no?”
Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat who is running as an independent in the November election and is polling next to last among the major candidates, has also criticized Mr. Mamdani’s democratic socialism, citing his previous positions on decriminalizing prostitution and defunding the police.
Jim Walden, a lawyer who is also running as an independent, said the mayoral election “pits capitalism against socialism.”
“Recycled” and “desperate” is how Dora Pekec, a spokeswoman for Mr. Mamdani, described the attacks against him. “New Yorkers know exactly who Zohran is and what he stands for,” she said.
How does Mr. Mamdani’s platform differ from either D.S.A. organization?
Mr. Mamdani filled out a questionnaire created by the New York City D.S.A. that reflects the issues the group is most concerned about in the endorsement process. The questionnaire asks for candidates’ stances and commitments on issues, and their beliefs have to line up with those of the D.S.A. if they want the group’s members to vote to endorse them.
But “we don’t have any red lines,” said Grace Mausser, co-chairwoman of the New York D.S.A., and “there’s nothing that you have to say yes to in order to get a D.S.A. endorsement.”
A spokeswoman added that if Mr. Mamdani had not publicly endorsed or addressed an issue during the campaign that it was not a part of his mayoral platform, which was focused on affordability.
Amid the criticism and scrutiny, Mr. Mamdani on Thursday insisted that his mayoral campaign was separate and apart from the platforms of the local and national D.S.A.
“My platform,” Mr. Mamdani said, “is not the same as national D.S.A. or any D.S.A. organization.”
Mr. Mamdani and his campaign have declined to go through the national D.S.A.’s platform point by point and give his position on each issue as Mr. Cuomo has demanded.
Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Mr. Cuomo, argued that Mr. Mamdani owed voters an explanation because he had “radical extremist positions against basic democratic values” and was “trying to defraud the voters by denying or refusing to answer basic questions on fundamental issues.”
Mr. Mamdani said Mr. Cuomo was attempting to distract from the popularity of the Mamdani campaign’s proposals.
“When I walk around New York City, I have New Yorkers come up to me and they recite one of the top three things that I ran on,” Mr. Mamdani said. “Freezing the rent for more than two million rent-stabilized tenants, making the slowest buses in the country fast and free, delivering universal child care.”
Jeffery C. Mays is a Times reporter covering politics with a focus on New York City Hall.
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