I have not written a great deal about Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Party nominee for the mayoralty of New York City other than to wonder if New Yorkers would elect an anti-Semite to move into Gracie Mansion.
At the time, with Mamdani's defeat of former NY Governor Andrew Cuomo, I operated on the assumption that Mamdani would face incumbent Mayor Eric Adams mano-a-mano. However, yesterday, Cuomo formally launched a third-party bid. As long as both Adams and Cuomo are in the race, it won't be enough to overcome Mamdani's momentum.
Of course, both Adams and Cuomo baggage. Adams is certainly beholden to President Trump for fear the DoJ could reinstate charges against him unless he does the White House's bidding while Trump is making friendly overtures to Cuomo. This won't do either of them any favors.
Under those circumstances, would New Yorkers appalled at Mamdani's anti-Semitism turn to someone without either Adams or Cuomo's baggage such as attorney Jim Walden, who is also running as an independent. Walden has proposed that "free market" candidates coalesce behind a single candidate by September to take on Mamdani. But unless Walden were to ding Mamdani directly in a mayoral debate or found some way to out-organize Mamdani, this is one big, long shot.
I am bracing myself for the possibility that New Yorkers will elect Mamdani. Should this come to pass, the steady stream of anti-Semitism in the United States since October 7, 2023, will turn into a flood. That I no longer live in New York City isn't enough. If Jews are unsafe in New York, then we are unsafe in all of America.
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