For all New Yorkers who might be considering casting their lot with socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, the editorial board of the Chicago Tribune wants to warn them: Don’t go down the same path the Windy City did.
If you haven’t been following the New York City mayoral race — one of those off-year contests, which can often determine which path the parties are taking in the aftermath of the presidential race — Mamdani has come from 1 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary to being practically even with the odds-on favorite, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Perhaps it’s New York voters remembering Andrew Cuomo is still Andrew Cuomo. Perhaps it’s the fact that Mamdani hasn’t killed anyone’s grandma or sexually harassed anyone’s daughter. (Yet.) Perhaps it’s the fact that the more progressive wing of the party usually turns out for these primary shindigs.
Whatever the case, an Emerson College/WPIX-TV/The Hill poll has Mamdani ultimately winning in the ranked-choice voting contest on Tuesday, according to WCBS-TV. Even though the nature of the contest makes prediction more difficult, the numbers show that Cuomo will be slightly ahead with 35 percent of the vote in the first round, compared to Mamdani’s 32 percent.
However, as candidates are eliminated one by one and their votes go to other candidates, Mamdani picks up 18 points after eight rounds, compared to only 12 points for Cuomo. Ergo, he’d win by a 50-47 percent margin in the ranked-choice balloting.
This should be a genuinely frightening prospect for anyone concerned about New York City. While one doesn’t have to root for Andy “I Kill Seniors” Cuomo, one also doesn’t have to give their support to a crypto-commie who wants to raise the minimum wage to $30 an hour, create city-owned grocery stores, arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and has stood behind his prior use of the phrase “globalize the intifada,” arguing it doesn’t really mean what it says it means.
But don’t just take it from me. Take it from the board of one of Chicago’s two most prominent newspapers, which warned that these promises only spelled trouble for New York. They should know, as Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was elected on a watered-down version of this agenda, minus the dog-whistle anti-Semitism. Guess how that’s worked?
“Johnson is one of the most progressive mayors in the U.S., but Mamdani, inarguably, is yet more radical,” the Chicago Tribune editorial board wrote in the Monday piece.
“Most of Mamdani’s ideas are shared (at least in principle) by Mayor Brandon Johnson, and many of them are popular in blue cities. But experience has taught us here that far-left candidates do not make for effective or popular municipal executives in today’s stressful economy,” the piece noted.
“Johnson tried to float a $300 million tax hike — and failed. He tried to pass a ‘mansion tax’ that would’ve hiked the real estate transfer tax — and failed. He’s built too few affordable housing units for too much money,” it continued.
“He’s isolated himself from many of the state and federal officials he hopes will come to his financial rescue, and he’s done egregious special favors for the people who got him elected — namely, pushing an incredibly costly new contract with the Chicago Teachers Union,” the editorial noted. “He forced out a highly competent schools chief who wouldn’t cow to his desire to borrow recklessly. His city is broke, but he wants to spend more. The list goes on.”
Indeed, highlighting the lamentable state of Chicago’s schools was timely, as the head of the Chicago Teachers Union said Monday that the school district needs to take a loan to cover its half-billion dollar budget deficit.
“The budget and its choices manifest into real impact that our young people get to experience,” Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
“So choices about the budget left students at Julian High School in 2025 without a math teacher for nearly a year, Clemente High School without a chemistry teacher. … Those are not occurrences. Those are choices.”
And these are choices coming to a school near you if 1) you live in New York City and 2) Mamdani gets elected. Are you not thrilled, Gothamites? Are you not entertained?
The board warned of where this was heading.
“Johnson’s approval rating cratered in his second year — a reflection of how quickly progressive promises collapsed under the weight of governance and Chicago’s financial reality. What sounded good in theory has translated into dysfunction, driven by fiscal missteps and political inexperience,” the board wrote.
They were ultimately hopeful thanks to the probability of higher turnout than Johnson had in the 2023 primary that saw him elected.
“Turnout for the mayoral primary in Chicago was abysmally low — just 36 percent of registered voters cast a ballot in the 2023 primary. We blame that, in part, on the city’s decision to hold these primary elections during the harshest weather we face all year, in the heart of February, though vote by mail exists as a remedy for folks who don’t wish to brave the cold on their way to the polls,” the board wrote.
“Low turnout makes it easier for radicals to capture public office. And that’s a mistake we hope New Yorkers don’t make. If New Yorkers are frustrated with Mayor Eric Adams, they should be careful not to trade him for someone who might preside over a city that is less competitive and less financially secure.
“Trust us — we’ve living that reality.”
This may, alas, be wishful thinking; the more that New Yorkers get engaged with the mayoral race, the more they want an alternative to Andrew Cuomo. He stunk in the debate, his campaigning is lackluster, and he can’t really run on his experience, as that’s what got him chased from office in the first place.
That being said, Mamdani isn’t the answer, as much as the lefty contingent in the Big Apple seems to think he is. While the Republicans won’t be a factor in November’s election, it’s worth noting that controversial current Mayor Eric Adams will be running as an independent.
If he ends up being the only impediment to Mamdani’s ascent, one hopes the Turkish will come with a cool $50 mil, or something. It could be the only hope for the saner residents of our nation’s biggest city.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
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