AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Thirty-three-year-old Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani has declared victory in the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City. At a time when the Democratic brand is facing deep unpopularity with voters, Mamdani's success is notable. But what, if anything, does it say about the direction of the party as a whole? Well, NPR's Stephen Fowler has been reporting on that very question since last year's election and joins us now. Hi, Stephen.
STEPHEN FOWLER, BYLINE: Hey, there.
CHANG: OK, let's start with last night. What do we first need to know about the dynamics of this specific primary in this specific race to understand Mamdani's victory?
FOWLER: First up, it is important to reiterate, this is one data point from one race and one city that primarily should not be extrapolated out to the national electorate as a whole, let alone the whole spectrum of Democrats.
CHANG: Fair.
FOWLER: Mamdani ran a grassroots campaign that was very charismatic, compelling and laser-focused on issues his campaign bet were most salient with voters. Here's an excerpt of his victory speech Tuesday night.
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ZOHRAN MAMDANI: I will fight for a city that works for you, that is affordable for you, that is safe for you. I will work to be a mayor you will be proud to call your own.
FOWLER: Also the incumbent Democratic Mayor Eric Adams is unpopular and running as an independent. And the longtime front-runner supported by many Democratic establishment figures, former governor Andrew Cuomo, had a lot of baggage from his time in office, including how he handled the COVID pandemic and sexual harassment allegations.
CHANG: OK, right. Beyond those caveats, though, is there anything under the surface in this one race that can help explain the broader state of the Democratic Party right now? What do you think?
FOWLER: Well, a lot of those establishment Democrats that endorsed Andrew Cuomo - people like former President Bill Clinton and South Carolina Democratic representative Jim Clyburn - also included many who called for him to resign just four years ago at a time when Democratic-aligned voters are not happy with said establishment. You're also seeing that with a flurry of young primary challengers popping up and House races with older incumbents made even more urgent by several older Democrats dying in office.
I also talked with Tom Jensen of Public Policy Polling, a firm affiliated with the Democratic Party and one of the few that seemed to capture momentum for Mamdani ahead of the election because of a surge of turnout in voters under 45 and people that hadn't voted before. Also he said Mamdani had a type of personal magnetism that Democratic candidates can replicate, regardless of their ideology.
TOM JENSEN: I think you can have that from a Democratic socialist perspective, but I think you can also have that from a moderate perspective. It's more about how you communicate with voters and that sort of thing than necessarily what your positions are on all the issues.
FOWLER: I mean, Jensen also said that type of magnetism reminds him of Barack Obama in 2008.
CHANG: OK, well, Stephen, let's just be very direct here. I mean, the Democratic Party is unpopular right now. It's out of power. Many people feel that it has not been able to effectively message opposition to President Trump's policies. Where do you think they go from here?
FOWLER: Well, there are things that the president's pushing that voters don't like, especially some of the specific ways Trump has sought to enforce immigration laws. Mamdani's victory speech positioned his vision for the mayor of New York City as someone who will, quote, "use the power to reject Donald Trump's fascism." And, you know, there are other Democrats that are similar messengers that are gaining more popularity.
CHANG: That is NPR's Stephen Fowler. Thank you, Stephen.
FOWLER: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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