And it’s only Day 1!
Zohran Mamdani’s Democratic Socialists of America allies said they’re ready to be the new mayor’s attack dogs — and go to war with “the corrupt Albany establishment” to help pass his freebie-filled agenda.
“Zohran’s agenda needs fighters in Albany, and that’s why we’re running a socialist slate for state legislature this year,” said Gustavo Gordilla, the NYC-DSA co-chair and a member of Mamdani’s economic development & workforce development transition committee.
“Winning free buses, delivering universal childcare, and defending our communities from [President] Trump’s attacks are what New Yorkers have demanded by electing Zohran,” Gordillo said Thursday.
“We’re not going to let the corrupt Albany establishment stand in the way of that mission.”
Grace Mausser, another NYC-DSA co-chair, said the left-wing group was not resting on its laurels after helping Mamdani win the mayoral election — indicating the organization is serious about passing a shared agenda.
“This is the result of years of work, not just to elect Zohran but to build up the political power of working people in NYC,” she said.
“That fight isn’t over just because Zohran is the mayor,” said Mausser, who serves as a member of Mamdani’s transition panel for small businesses and minority and women and business enterprises.
“The same billionaires who backed [Andrew] Cuomo and Trump are going to throw everything they’ve got into blocking Zohran’s agenda in City Hall and Albany. But they’ll be going up against the army that Zohran and DSA have shown we can mobilize,” she said.
For years, the DSA has promoted a “Tax the Rich” campaign that Mamdani campaigned on — such as additional tax increases on those earning above $1 million a year.
DSA has also pushed for making billionaires pay income tax on their investment gains; a pied-a-terre tax on non-primary residences worth more than $5 million and stock transfer and buyback taxes.
Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, who is running for re-election this year, opposes hiking income taxes on the rich, but has not ruled out raising other levies, such as raising the corporate tax.
DSA has been flexing its muscles since 2018, when it helped Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez topple then-Queens Rep. and former Queens Democratic Party chairman Joe Crowley in the Democratic primary for Congress.
The socialist group also helped elect a slate of candidates to the state Legislature and City Council, with fellow DSA member Mamdani’s stunning win being its crowning achievement, following Ocasio-Cortez’s ascension.
In 2018, DSA member Julia Salazar defeated then-state Sen. Martin Dilan, becoming the first DSA-backed candidate elected to the statehouse.
The new slate of candidates DSA is backing in Democratic primaries this year includes:
- In Harlem’s Assembly District 70, public defender and union organizer Conrad Blackburn will take on first-term incumbent Jordan Wright, son of Manhattan Democratic leader and former Assemblyman Keith Wright.
- In Queens’ Assembly District 38, David Orkin, a workers’ and immigration rights lawyer, will challenge incumbent Jenifer Rajkumar, a close ally of former Mayor Eric Adams.
- In Queens’ Assembly District 34, community organizer and Palestinian activist Aber Kawas will run to succeed Jessica González-Rojas, who is vying for state Senate. Kawas, who has been endorsed by Mamdani as well as the DSA, has come under fire for resurfaced comments, including blasting federal holidays as no cause for celebration.
- In Brooklyn’s Assembly District 54, DSA is backing insurgent Christian Celeste Tate against Democratic incumbent Erik Dilan.
- In a rematch in Brooklyn’s Assembly District 56, DSA again is backing Eon Huntled against incumbent Stefani Zinerman, who prevailed by just six points in the 2024 primary. Zinerman had the backing of powerful House Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and state Attorney General Letitia James.
