{"id":508401,"date":"2026-06-24T05:29:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T05:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/508401\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T05:29:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T05:29:11","slug":"mamdani-backed-progressives-sweep-new-york-primaries-in-warning-sign-for-israel-suppo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/508401\/","title":{"rendered":"Mamdani-backed progressives sweep New York primaries in warning sign for Israel suppo"},"content":{"rendered":"

A tense and rainy primary night in New York offered the clearest sign yet that the city\u2019s Democratic Party<\/a> is undergoing a major political shift, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani emerging as the central power broker behind a wave of left-wing victories that could reshape the city\u2019s representation in Washington.<\/p>\n

Mamdani-backed candidates won a series of closely watched Democratic primaries on Tuesday night, defeating establishment figures and strengthening the influence of the progressive left in one of the most Jewish and politically important cities in the United States. For Israeli officials and pro-Israel voters in New York, the results are likely to be read as a warning sign: several of the winning candidates have taken sharply critical positions toward Israel, including accusations that Israel is committing \u201cgenocide\u201d in Gaza and calls to restrict or halt U.S. military aid.<\/p>\n

\"\u05e8\u05d0\u05e9<\/a>\"\u05e8\u05d0\u05e9<\/p>\n

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani <\/p>\n

(Photo: AP Photo\/Yuki Iwamura)<\/p>\n

The most dramatic upset came in New York\u2019s 10th Congressional District, which includes Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn. Brad Lander, a former New York City comptroller and close Mamdani ally, defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman<\/a>, a Jewish Democrat considered one of the more pro-Israel voices in the city\u2019s congressional delegation.<\/p>\n

Goldman, who received support from pro-Israel donors and groups, had faced sustained criticism from the left over his stance on Israel and the war in Gaza. Lander, who is also Jewish, has described Israel\u2019s war in Gaza as \u201cgenocide\u201d and has said he would support restrictions on U.S. military aid to Israel.<\/p>\n

In his victory speech, Lander vowed to abolish the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, described Israel\u2019s war in Gaza as \u201cgenocide\u201d and referred to \u201cTrump\u2019s fascism.\u201d His victory gives Mamdani a key ally in a district that includes some of the country\u2019s most prominent Jewish and progressive communities.<\/p>\n

Mamdani celebrated the results as proof that his movement had outgrown the mayoral campaign that brought him to City Hall last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cA year ago, it was not the end of a political movement,\u201d Mamdani told supporters. \u201cIt was the beginning!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe old politics that got us to this crisis is not the politics that is going to get us out of this crisis,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\"\u05d1\u05e8\u05d0\u05d3<\/a>\"\u05d1\u05e8\u05d0\u05d3<\/p>\n

Brad Lander <\/p>\n

(Photo: AP Photo\/Yuki Iwamura)<\/p>\n

In New York\u2019s 7th Congressional District, which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens, Mamdani-backed Claire Valdez defeated Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who had been backed by retiring Rep. Nydia Vel\u00e1zquez. The result was another blow to the city\u2019s older progressive establishment, which had rallied behind Reynoso.<\/p>\n

Valdez, a democratic socialist state assemblywoman and former union organizer, has been a harsh critic of Israel. She has backed the \u201cNot on Our Dime\u201d campaign, which seeks to restrict New York-based nonprofit funding connected to Israeli settlements in the West Bank. During the campaign, she also aligned herself with calls to \u201cFree Palestine\u201d and \u201cabolish ICE,\u201d positions that helped mobilize young progressive activists but alarmed many pro-Israel Democrats.<\/p>\n

The third major Mamdani-backed victory came in New York\u2019s 13th Congressional District, covering Upper Manhattan and parts of the Bronx. Darializa Avila Chevalier, a community organizer and Columbia University graduate, defeated veteran Rep. Adriano Espaillat, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.<\/p>\n

The race was one of the most bitter of the night. Avila Chevalier had been criticized over past social media posts and over her record of anti-Israel activism, including involvement in pro-Palestinian organizing at Columbia. During the campaign, she attacked Espaillat over his position on Israel and over his ties to pro-Israel donors.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday we make it clear \u2014 the politics of the past ends today,\u201d she said at her victory party, adding that \u201cthe era of taking a check and cashing a check and calling it representation is over.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also said, \u201cNo longer will we accept a politics that throws scraps at us and acts as if we should be grateful for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\u05e7\u05dc\u05d9\u05d9\u05e8<\/a>\"\u05e7\u05dc\u05d9\u05d9\u05e8<\/p>\n

Her victory is expected to deepen concern among New York\u2019s pro-Israel voters, particularly because of her campus activism and her criticism of U.S. support for Israel. During a recent forum, when asked about Hamas, she said she condemned the terrorist organization but argued that the focus should be on where U.S. tax dollars are going.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I will not do is let a question be used to distract us from the documented reality that over hundreds of thousands of people, Palestinians specifically, have been killed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile, yes, I do condemn Hamas, the problem is that our country, the thing that we can control, is where our money and our tax dollars are going,\u201d she added. \u201cRight now, it is going towards indiscriminate slaughter.\u201d<\/p>\n

The results give Mamdani three new allies expected to enter Congress from safe Democratic districts in November. They also mark a direct challenge to House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who backed establishment candidates and has been a strong supporter of the U.S.-Israel relationship.<\/p>\n

Jeffries had tried to downplay Mamdani\u2019s influence before the results came in.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have agreed to strongly disagree,\u201d Jeffries said of Mamdani on Capitol Hill. \u201cThere are 215 members of the House Democratic caucus. A handful of primaries that go in one direction or the other, in a given state or two, aren\u2019t going to reshape who we are as House Democrats.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Tuesday night\u2019s results suggested that in New York, at least, Mamdani\u2019s political machine can do exactly that.<\/p>\n

Mamdani did not endorse in another closely watched race, the Democratic primary in New York\u2019s 12th Congressional District, the Manhattan seat being vacated by longtime Rep. Jerry Nadler. The district has one of the highest concentrations of Jewish voters in the United States. State Assemblyman Micah Lasher, who was backed by Nadler and former mayor Michael Bloomberg, defeated a crowded field that included Assemblyman Alex Bores and Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of President John F. Kennedy.<\/p>\n

Lasher\u2019s win offered some relief to establishment Democrats, particularly in a district where Israel, antisemitism and the future of liberal Zionist politics remain central issues. In his victory remarks, Lasher said he wanted to \u201crevamp and recharge the Democratic Party\u201d and \u201cshow that Democrats in Congress have bold new ideas to improve the lives of struggling Americans and then deliver on them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\u05e0\u05e9\u05d9\u05d0<\/a>\"\u05e0\u05e9\u05d9\u05d0<\/p>\n

(Photo: Julia Demaree Nikhinson\/AP)<\/p>\n

While New York City\u2019s left celebrated, Republicans saw a Trump-backed win upstate. In New York\u2019s 21st Congressional District, Anthony Constantino, the chief executive of Sticker Mule, defeated state Assemblyman Robert Smullen in the Republican primary for the seat vacated by Elise Stefanik.<\/p>\n

Constantino gained national attention in 2024 after placing a large \u201cVote for Trump\u201d sign on the roof of his company\u2019s headquarters. He also released a pro-Trump hip-hop album and commissioned a statue of Trump that he gave to the president in Florida. His win showed that Trump\u2019s endorsement remains powerful in Republican primaries, even when local party figures back another candidate.<\/p>\n

For Israel, the New York results present a more complicated picture than a simple progressive sweep. Candidates sharply critical of Israel gained ground in Congress and in state politics, and Mamdani has strengthened his role as the most important left-wing power broker in the city. But establishment and pro-Israel forces were not wiped out completely, with Lasher winning the Nadler seat and other pro-Israel candidates advancing elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Still, the direction of travel is clear. In New York, long considered a center of American Jewish political power and one of Israel\u2019s strongest bases of support in the Democratic Party, a younger and more confrontational left is gaining strength. Mamdani\u2019s allies did not just win symbolic races. They defeated sitting members of Congress, party-backed candidates and pro-Israel incumbents.<\/p>\n

For Jerusalem, the message is hard to ignore: the Democratic Party in New York is not moving as one bloc, but its center of gravity on Israel is shifting, and the politicians most willing to challenge the old consensus are now winning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A tense and rainy primary night in New York offered the clearest sign yet that the city\u2019s Democratic…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508402,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[85,46,43],"class_list":["post-508401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-israel","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508401"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508401\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}