New Yorkers go to the polls on November 4 in what is shaping up to be one of the city’s most consequential mayoral contests in decades.
The race pits Andrew Cuomo, the centrist former governor, against Zohran Mamdani, a progressive insurgent promising structural overhaul.
With New York facing an affordability crisis, divisions over how to improve public safety, and a $34 billion budget shortfall due to federal spending cuts, voters will weigh two starkly different visions for the city’s future.
Mamdani, 33, orchestrated one of the great upsets in New York politics when he trounced a crowded field in June’s Democratic primary.
The Ugandan-born, New York-raised state assemblyman tapped into frustration over the soaring cost of living, using social media and an expansive grassroots operation that knocked on doors 1.7 million times.
A self-described Democratic socialist, Mamdani has pledged to address the affordability crisis by freezing rents on rent-stabilised apartments and providing universal childcare, free buses and city-owned grocery stores.
To fund the estimated $7 billion price tag for his proposals, Mamdani said he would raise taxes on corporations and the city’s wealthiest residents.
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Critics point to his limited experience, his past support for defunding the police and his embrace of socialist policies as ill-suited to running a global financial capital. He has received endorsements from the state governor, Kathy Hochul, and the former vice-president Kamala Harris, while other Democratic leaders have remained noncommittal.
Andrew Cuomo
Mamdani has a double-digit lead over Cuomo
YUKI IWAMURA/AP
The former governor and once-unassailable heavyweight of New York politics launched an independent campaign after losing the Democratic primary to Mamdani in June.
Framing himself as a steady hand in chaotic times, the 67-year-old has stressed competence over ideology, touting his record on infrastructure and crisis management.
In an artificial intelligence-generated campaign advertisement, Cuomo is shown driving a subway train, hanging from a skyscraper as a window cleaner and striding across the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
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“There are a lot of jobs I can’t do, but I’m ready to be your mayor on day one,” he says in the advert.
After resigning as governor in 2021 amid a sexual harassment scandal, Cuomo’s candidacy is widely seen as a final attempt at redemption.
Curtis Sliwa
Curtis Sliwa has resisted pressure to drop out
RON SACHS/CNP/SPLASHNEWS.COM
The Republican candidate, 71, is best known for founding the Guardian Angels, the volunteer anti-crime patrol formed during the city’s crime wave in the 1970s and 1980s.
After finishing a distant second to Eric Adams in 2021, Curtis Sliwa has returned with what he calls a “common sense” campaign focused on public safety and affordability.
In a city where Democrats make up two thirds of the electorate, Sliwa faces no viable path to victory but has resisted pressure to drop out and clear the way for Cuomo.
Eric Adams
Eric Adams
EDUARDO MUNOZ ALVAREZ/AP
Beset by low polling and multiple corruption scandals, the incumbent mayor ended his re-election campaign last month. His name will still appear on the ballot.
The big issuesHousing affordability
Mamdani has proposed freezing rents for one million rent-stabilised tenants, constructing 200,000 new affordable units over the next decade, and creating an agency to oversee publicly owned housing. He has also called for rezoning wealthier neighbourhoods to allow greater residential density.
Cuomo has vowed to accelerate the construction of affordable housing by developing underused public land and expanding protections for renters.
Law and order
Mamdani wants to create a new department of community safety to handle non-emergency calls involving the mentally ill and homeless. He has said he would maintain existing police staffing levels.
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Cuomo has proposed hiring 5,000 additional beat officers, offering bonuses to boost morale, and increasing the police presence on the subway.
Transportation
Mamdani has pledged to make buses free and expand subway service.
Cuomo has proposed lowering transit costs through expanded discounted access to buses and increased subsidised fare programmes.
Economic policy
Mamdani plans to raise the city’s minimum wage from $16.50 to $30 by 2030 — a move economists warn could pressure small businesses and lead to job losses.
Cuomo has emphasised business-friendly policies designed to spur economic growth and job creation.
Education
Mamdani wants to get rid of New York’s programme for gifted primary school pupils
ALAMY
Mamdani has vowed to phase out the city’s gifted-and-talented programme in primary schools, arguing that early testing unfairly segregates pupils. He supports providing universal, high-quality early education instead.
Cuomo advocates expanding charter schools, modernising the curriculum and offering financial incentives to teachers in high-demand subjects.
The polls
Surveys suggest the race is Mamdani’s to lose. He has maintained a consistent double-digit lead over Cuomo since July, reflecting strong support among progressives and younger voters.
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Despite his name recognition, Cuomo has struggled to attract independents and centrist Democrats. Sliwa is polling between 12 per cent and 15 per cent.
A debate between the three candidates will take place in WNBC’s studios at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, at 7pm ET on Thursday October 16. It will be streamed on NBC 4 New York, Telemundo and Politico, and we will be bringing you live coverage and analysis. A second debate will take place on October 22 at 7pm.
Key dates for voting and resultsEarly in-person voting begins on October 25 and runs to November 2. Eligible voters can request mail-in ballots until October 25Polls close at 9pm ET on Tuesday November 4. Preliminary results from in-person and early voting will be released that nightIf the race is close, the final outcome may hinge on mail-in and absentee ballots, which can take several weeks to countUnlike the primaries, which used ranked-choice voting, the election will be decided under a first-past-the-post systemThe new mayor will be sworn in on January 1