New York. Today, the city's Democrats decide in the primaries whether to relaunch the career of
Andrew Cuomo, support the progressive
Zohran Mamdani, or choose another less polarizing candidate in the face of a divided political landscape.
Your decision could reveal something about the type of leader Democrats are looking for during President Donald
Trump's second term.
The vote takes place on a sweltering day, approximately four years after Cuomo resigned as governor following a sexual harassment scandal. However, the 67-year-old candidate has been the favorite throughout the race, thanks to his extensive experience, almost universal recognition, strong political connections, and a powerful fundraising system.
The progressive wing of the party, for its part, has rallied around Mamdani, a self-proclaimed social democrat of 33 years old. Mamdani, a relatively unknown state legislator at the beginning of the race, gained momentum with a forceful campaign, focused on the high cost of living in the city, and secured the support of two of the country's most prominent progressives: Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders.
Preliminary results will be published after the polls close at 9 p.m. on Tuesday; a winner may not be known for up to a week due to the city's ranked-choice voting system, which allows voters to submit up to five candidates in order of preference. If a candidate is the first choice of the majority of voters, they win outright. If no candidate reaches that threshold, the count of the positions will not begin until July 1st.
The primary winner will face the incumbent mayor, Eric Adams, a Democrat who decided to run as an independent amid public uproar over his corruption charges and the subsequent abandonment of the case by Trump's Department of Justice.