Rana Abdelhamid, an Egyptian American and Muslim community organizer, has filed to run for Assembly District 36, the western Queens district that covers the Astoria neighborhood, according to City & State<\/a>, citing state Board of Elections records.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, DSA leaders have already recruited former Queens DSA co-chair Diana Moreno to run for the seat, while local reports indicate that Mary Jobaida, a past candidate for a neighboring district, may also run.<\/p>\n Abdelhamid is a member of the New York City chapter of the DSA. The chapter is the largest in the country, with more than 11,200 members, including Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez<\/a>, D-N.Y. Tiffany Cab\u00e1n, the Astoria neighborhood’s city council member, is also a DSA member.<\/p>\n The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) appear to be lining up to clinch Zohran Mamdani\u2019s New York State Assembly seat after the 34-year-old stunned the political landscape and will become the city\u2019s next mayor in January. (Angela Weiss\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n ZOHRAN MAMDANI LANDS KEY ENDORSEMENT IN NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL RACE<\/a><\/p>\n A DSA win in this race would mark another step in the group\u2019s growing influence over New York politics.<\/p>\n Abdelhamid previously mounted a 2022 primary challenge against then-Rep. Carolyn Maloney, whose district included both the Upper East Side and western Queens. She dropped out of the race after the district\u2019s boundaries were redrawn to exclude Queens, the outlet reported.<\/p>\n Abdelhamid is deeply involved with the Middle Eastern and North African<\/a> (MENA) community in Astoria and helped lead a successful push for the state to collect more accurate demographic data on MENA communities, according to City & State.<\/p>\n She also founded a women\u2019s self-defense organization called Malikah and previously told the outlet that she grew up in Astoria, in a part of the neighborhood nicknamed “Little Egypt.”<\/p>\n Sources told the outlet that Moreno will likely receive the DSA endorsement.<\/p>\n Left: Diana Moreno leading chants outside Sen. Chuck Schumer\u2019s Brooklyn home during a 2021 immigrant rights demonstration. Right: Rana Abdelhamid in Queens, New York, in 2022. Both are running to replace Mamdani.\u00a0 (Michael M. Santiago \/ Getty Images; Amir Hamja \/ Bloomberg via Getty Images)<\/p>\n LINDA SARSOUR TELLS FOLLOWERS SHE WILL \u2018HOLD ZOHRAN ACCOUNTABLE\u2019 IF MAMDANI WINS NYC MAYORAL RACE<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Zohran](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1763152154_363_mamdani-mayor-victory.jpg\")
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![\"Zohran](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1763152155_740_zohran-mamdani-election-night-watch-party.jpg\")
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