Democrats celebrate while Republicans stew over Mamdani’s historic victory

Progressives awoke to a rare recent moment of political celebration with the election of Zohran Mamdani as the next mayor of New York, while Republicans breathlessly described it as a harbinger for the end of the country.

“The future looks a little bit brighter,” Barack Obama wrote on X. “It’s a reminder that when we come together around strong, forward-looking leaders who care about the issues that matter, we can win.”

Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, writing on Bluesky, said Mamdani’s campaign “showed that when we fight for bold policies like universal child care that make life more affordable for working families, we can win big”.

Democratic responses to Mamdani’s victory tended to portray it – and other victories Tuesday – as a direct public rebuke to Donald Trump and a sign that voters want to see a fight.

“Last night was a referendum on Trump’s corruption, cruelty, and chaos,” wrote Chris Murphy, a senator from Connecticut, on social media. “But it’s also not a coincidence these big wins came at the exact moment when Democrats are using our power to stand for something and be strong. A huge risk to not learn that lesson.”

Many Republicans’ immediate reaction, however, was to attribute Mamdani’s win to an electorate overrepresented by immigrants, snidely implying they were not “real” Americans. As results from the contest rolled in on Tuesday evening, the senior White House policy adviser Stephen Miller posted a screenshot from a 2023 report by the New York City office of immigrant affairs that notes almost half of the city’s households contain at least one immigrant.

The US president, meanwhile, was typically self-effacing, posting in all caps: “‘Trump wasn’t on the ballot, and shutdown, were the two reasons Republicans lost elections tonight’, according to pollsters.”

The Democratic representative Pramila Jayapal retorted the next morning: “Trump and his extremist policies were on the ballot – AND the Republican shutdown is bad for Republicans.”

On Wednesday morning, Trump seemed slightly more reflective as he had breakfast with Republican senators, but doubled down on blaming the shutdown. “I thought we’d have a discussion after the press leaves about what last night represented, and what we should do about it,” he said. “And also about the shutdown, how that relates to last night. I think if you read the pollsters, the shutdown was a big factor, negative for the Republicans.”

Other Republicans were more histrionic, referring to the movie Escape from New York, likening the election of a Muslim to electing a jihadist, and suggesting that conservative voters would punish Democrats in the midterms for it.

“Join me for a moment of silence for NYC,” said the Texas governor, Greg Abbott. “Thoughts & prayers.”

“Florida has welcomed those fleeing communist and socialist regimes for decades,” wrote Senator Rick Scott of Florida. “Tonight is no different – Florida will welcome all freedom-loving New Yorkers!”

“Democrats in New York City have chosen a true extremist and Marxist, and the consequences will be felt across our entire nation,” the House speaker, Mike Johnson, wrote, falsely claiming that Mamdani’s policies included “defunding the police, seizing private property and massive tax increases”.

Conservative candidates commonly make opposing what they call “big-city Democrats” part of their campaigns in state and local elections, a prospect that Republicans appear poised to do with Mamdani.

“What happened in New York is a disgrace. Socialism is un-American, plain and simple,” wrote Senator John Cornyn of Texas, then added, mentioning several Texas Democratic politicians: “But let me be clear: I’m fighting tooth and nail to make sure Zohran Mamdani’s radical pals Jasmine Crockett, Colin Allred, Beto O’Rourke and James Talarico never bring that nonsense to Texas.”