Carl E. Heastie, the speaker of the New York State Assembly, is expected to endorse his legislative colleague, Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, for New York City mayor this week, according to two people with knowledge of his plans.
Mr. Heastie had been among several high-profile Democrats who had resisted endorsing Mr. Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary by a significant margin, with some expressing reservations about Mr. Mamdani’s desire to raise taxes on wealthy New Yorkers and his criticism of Israel.
But in recent days, Gov. Kathy Hochul, the most prominent holdout, got off the fence and backed Mr. Mamdani, who holds a commanding polling lead.
Ms. Hochul wrote in a New York Times essay that despite some disagreements with Mr. Mamdani, she was “confident that he has the courage, urgency and optimism New York City needs to lead it through the challenges of this moment.”
Along with Ms. Hochul, Mr. Heastie will hold enormous influence over the fate of Mr. Mamdani’s policy agenda if he is elected.
He and his Senate counterpart, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, will negotiate with Ms. Hochul over the state budget, which often includes the biggest fiscal and policy priorities of the New York City mayor. (Ms. Stewart-Cousins, for her part, quickly endorsed Mr. Mamdani after his primary victory, saying she “always” supports the Democratic nominee.)
The delay in Mr. Heastie’s public support partly reflected the unique dynamics of the large Democratic majority in the Legislature and the antipathy some in his delegation feel toward Mr. Mamdani. But his backing is emblematic of the growing realization among Democrats that Mr. Mamdani is likely to win this fall.
Recent public opinion polls, including one from The New York Times and Siena University, show Mr. Mamdani with a large lead over his three major competitors: former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who is running as an independent; Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee; and Mayor Eric Adams, who is also running as an independent.
Representatives for Mr. Heastie and for Mr. Mamdani declined to comment on the likely endorsement, which was first reported by the New York Post.
Nicholas Fandos contributed reporting.
Benjamin Oreskes is a reporter covering New York State politics and government for The Times.
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