{"id":213616,"date":"2026-04-29T03:27:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T03:27:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/213616\/"},"modified":"2026-04-29T03:27:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T03:27:08","slug":"mamdani-backed-insurgent-dsa-newcomer-massively-underperforms-in-nyc-council-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/213616\/","title":{"rendered":"Mamdani-backed insurgent, DSA newcomer massively underperforms in NYC council race"},"content":{"rendered":"

A City Council candidate handpicked by Mayor Zohran Mamdani <\/a>massively underperformed in an attempt to nab a seat repping Manhattan\u2019s Greenwich Village Tuesday \u2014 delivering a major blow to the fledgling mayor early in his term.<\/p>\n

While the race has not yet been called, frontrunner Carl Wilson nabbed just over 43% of the vote as of Tuesday night. Because none of the candidates got over half the vote in the special election for the District 3 council seat, election officials will go through the ranked-choice process to determine the winner. <\/p>\n

Mamdani-backed Lindsey Boylan walked away with just over 25% while Layla Law-Gisiko had around 20% with nearly all scanners reporting <\/a>Tuesday night.<\/p>\n

Wilson was backed by Speaker Julie Menin. Facebook \/ Carl Michael Wilson<\/p>\n

The seat was up for grabs after being vacated by Erik Bottcher, who was elected as a state senator for the borough\u2019s 47th District.<\/p>\n

The results appeared to be a decisive blow to Mamdani, who made desperate last-ditch attempts to fill the influential seat with Boylan \u2013 a former staffer of then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo who became the first of several women<\/a> to accuse her ex-boss of sexual harassment.<\/p>\n

The race could also signal that, despite his popularity, Mamdani\u2019s influence may not translate to other races, potentially preventing his and his comrades\u2019 goals of increasing the ranks of DSA members in office.<\/p>\n

Mamdani made a last-minute attempt to back Boylan for office. Facebook \/ Lindsey Boylan<\/p>\n

Wilson\u2019s heavy lead is also a big win for Council Speaker Julie Menin, who campaigned hard to prevent the recently converted socialist Boylan who has been criticized as merely jumping on the lefty bandwagon <\/a>after Mamdani\u2019s stunning win last year.<\/p>\n

Menin was quick to celebrate the results, calling the race a \u201cresounding victory\u201d for her choice candidate even before the other ranked-choice rounds were tallied up.<\/p>\n

Tonight, we had a resounding victory by electing Carl Wilson as our next City Council Member.<\/p>\n

Carl has been a friend and colleague for many years, and I couldn\u2019t have been more proud to endorse him in this election.<\/p>\n

He built an unbelievable coalition that inspired voters across\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2014 Julie Menin (@JulieMenin) April 29, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Boylan just recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America and won over support from another lefty group, the Working Families Party.<\/p>\n

Mamdani had urged his supporters to back Boylan as the \u201cprogressive choice\u201d and said the Wilson campaign was cashing checks from some of the same donors who bankrolled Cuomo\u2019s failed mayoral campaign.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was the first to speak out against Andrew Cuomo,\u201d Hizzoner wrote in a post to X. \u201cNow some of his biggest donors are flooding Tuesday\u2019s special election with money to stop her. That tells you everything about who the progressive choice is: Lindsey Boylan.\u201d<\/p>\n

The underwhelming results for Mamdani\u2019s pick could signal his influence on other races isn\u2019t as strong as politicos have thought. Lone Pine Press for NY Post<\/p>\n

He even went out to campaign for Boylan on Tuesday as people cast their ballots.<\/p>\n

But it wasn\u2019t enough to defeat Wilson \u2014 who was the establishment choice and already up to speed on the district\u2019s political scene, having previously served as Bottcher\u2019s chief of staff.<\/p>\n

Wilson\u2019s campaign platform emphasized access to housing, public safety, and LGBTQ+ and immigrant protections. <\/p>\n

Wilson was the only openly gay candidate in the running for the district, which has been represented by a LGBTQ council member since 1991.<\/p>\n

The soon-to-be lawmaker will likely be an important vote for Menin as she spars with Mamdani.<\/p>\n

Menin and allies are currently mulling overriding the mayor\u2019s veto on Eric Dinowitz\u2019s (D-Manhattan) school buffer zone bill, allowing the NYPD to set up no-protest zones around schools and universities.<\/p>\n

The speaker needs just four votes to override the mayor\u2019s rejection.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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