Senator Bernie Sanders Endorses Zohran Mamdani For NYC Mayor

India-West News Desk

NEW YORK, NY — U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders has endorsed New York State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani for mayor of New York City, calling the 32-year-old progressive “the bold and visionary leader this moment demands.”

The endorsement, announced June 17, is the latest high-profile boost for Mamdani’s insurgent campaign, which has steadily gained traction among younger and more left-leaning voters. “We need a new politics and new leadership prepared to stand up to powerful corporate interests and fight for the working class,” Sanders said in a statement. “Zohran Mamdani is that leader.”

Mamdani, who represents Queens’ 36th Assembly District, is the son of renowned filmmaker Mira Nair and Ugandan academic Mahmood Mamdani. Born in Kampala and raised in New York, he previously worked as a housing counselor before becoming one of the first South Asians and Muslims elected to the New York State Legislature in 2020.

His campaign for mayor focuses on an expansive progressive agenda: constructing 200,000 units of affordable housing, instituting a citywide rent freeze, offering universal free childcare, making buses fare-free, opening city-owned grocery stores, slashing small business fines, expanding mental health care, and raising the minimum wage. He proposes paying for these programs by increasing taxes on large corporations and the wealthiest 1% of New Yorkers.

“This campaign isn’t backed by billionaires—it’s powered by the people,” Mamdani said in a statement following the endorsement, adding that he will “strive each and every day to live up to Senator Sanders’ example, making New York affordable—and hopefully making Brooklyn proud.”

Mamdani’s campaign has raised funds primarily through small-dollar donations, with more than 27,000 individual contributions so far. He has also been endorsed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who urged voters to rank him first in the city’s ranked-choice primary system.

With early voting already underway, Mamdani is polling second in the Democratic primary, trailing former Governor Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo, attempting a political comeback, has secured endorsements from establishment figures including former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg and ex-Governor David Paterson. Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, facing low approval ratings among Democrats, is running as an independent and skipping the primary altogether.

Mamdani has also faced pushback. The New York Times Editorial Board recently advised voters to reject his candidacy, writing, “His experience is too thin, and his agenda reads like a turbocharged version of Mr. de Blasio’s dismaying mayoralty.”

Still, Mamdani’s supporters argue that his campaign offers a break from politics-as-usual in a city struggling with widening inequality, housing costs, and growing disillusionment with traditional leaders.

As Sanders put it: “At this pivotal and dangerous moment in American history, status quo politics is not good enough.”