With the election now in the rear view mirror, data shows significant shifts in the Bronx that helped propel the Democratic nominee, Zohran Mamdani, to victory.\n<\/p>\n
In the June primary, former Governor Andrew Cuomo easily won the borough, defeating<\/a> Mamdani 54% to 36%. <\/p>\n But on Nov. 4, the tables turned \u2014 Mamdani won<\/a> 51.5% of the vote, compared to Cuomo\u2019s 40%.<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s success is at least partly attributable to party loyalty in the borough with well over half a million active registered Democrat voters.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n In the Bronx, Democratic voters outnumber Republicans by more than nine to one, and more than three times\u00a0the number of those with no party affiliation, according to state elections data.<\/a><\/p>\n Mamdani also received far more votes on the Democratic line (104,177) than on the Working Families Party line (10,690).\u00a0\n<\/p>\n However, factors beyond than party loyalty appear to have handed Mamdani the win over Cuomo.\n<\/p>\n Voter registration surges<\/p>\n It appears that Mamdani\u2019s campaign may also have been successful in driving registration. Data from the city and state Board of Elections show that Bronx election districts with the biggest increases in registered voters from Feb. 2025 tended to vote for Mamdani in the general election. Mamdani won the 10 districts in the Bronx with the biggest surge\u00a0in registered voters by more than 20 percentage points each.<\/p>\n Johnny Chavarria cast a vote for Mamdani in his first mayoral election last week. Chavarria, originally from Honduras, lived in Bedford Park for 10 years before becoming a citizen. He told the Bronx Times that after watching from the sidelines for so long he didn\u2019t want to take the opportunity for granted.<\/p>\n \u201c\u200aOh my God, finally someone with some sense, you know?\u201d Chavarria said. \u201cSo, I think it\u2019s pretty easy to vote for him [Mamdani].\u201d\n<\/p>\n He also said that his identity as an immigrant influenced his decision heavily. \u201c\u200aAs a Latino man, I wanna make sure I\u2019m on the right side of history,\u201d Chavarria said.\n<\/p>\n He told the Bronx Times that he knew people on the West Coast had been struggling with the presence of ICE in recent months.\n<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s another reason to vote, [to elect] someone that is gonna stand up to Trump\u2019s bullying and not be afraid to speak truth to power,\u201d Chavarria said.\n<\/p>\n But Chavarria said that it went beyond the immediate issues \u2014 to the core of a U.S. political system that he feels is no longer serving voters effectively.\n<\/p>\n \u201c\u200aThe two party system: it\u2019s cool, but it\u2019s played out,\u201d Chavarria said. \u201cThere\u2019s a younger voting audience and we need more options and people who actually do care in politics, instead of businessmen in politics that only care about money.\u201d<\/p>\n New perspectives<\/p>\n At an Oct. 5 event<\/a> in Mott Haven, excited supporters greeted Mamdani outside Mill Brook Houses and peppered him with questions about improving 311, housing costs and more.\u00a0<\/p>\n The event demonstrated his appeal to a wide range of people, including those who said his young age (34) and lack of government experience were assets, not detriments.\u00a0<\/p>\n Martha Santiago, who has lived at Mill Brook Houses for 58 years and raised her four children there, was among those who told the Bronx Times she was \u201ctired of these old people with the same old ideas.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s about time to get a change,\u201d Santiago said.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n Andre Easton<\/a>, 38, a high school English teacher in the South Bronx, was also seeking sweeping change in this year\u2019s election and beyond.\u00a0<\/p>\n Not only did he vote for Mamdani \u201cwith enthusiasm,\u201d he\u2019s also challenging Rep. Ritchie Torres for Congressional District 15 as an independent candidate, officially a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation.\u00a0<\/p>\n Easton did not work with Mamdani\u2019s campaign but spoke with<\/a> many voters in the borough during election season, he said.\u00a0His main takeaway from Mamdani\u2019s victory is the collective power of regular people \u2014 nearly 100,000 of whom volunteered for the campaign throughout the city.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the community is organized \u2026 there is no force on earth that can stop or deter them,\u201d Easton said. He said he\u2019s pleased to have socialism \u201cback in the popular lexicon,\u201d thanks to the mayor-elect. Even in New York City, often regarded as the American center of capitalism, socialism is now \u201cno longer a fringe position.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n He said that socialism means working-class people \u2014 not profit motives \u2014 are the \u201cdriver of society,\u201d and the working class includes everyone who labors for wages, whether high or low.\u00a0Mamdani proved that now is a good time for such principles in the city, Easton said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Partly but not exclusively due to the Trump presidency, many feel societal protections they\u2019ve long enjoyed have been \u201cgrenaded,\u201d the cost of living is unsustainable and the wealth gap is worse than ever, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Easton said Mamdani skillfully narrowed in on policies that a wide range of people could agree with and easily name: a rent freeze, fast and free buses and universal childcare.\u00a0The sweeping campaign \u201cspoke to the needs that people in the Bronx resonated with\u201d \u2014 and\u00a0 may even help build trust in politics, Easton said.\u00a0<\/p>\n As a candidate, Mandani met with communities far beyond his own, spoke multiple languages and was a consistent, often viral presence on social media. As a result, many New Yorkers got involved in his campaign in \u201csustained\u201d ways, where they previously sat on the sidelines, said Easton.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a relatable guy, you know?\u201d he said. \u201cMamdani came out with bold proposals and openly identified as a socialist, and I think that level of boldness inspired people to at least take a chance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Easton said he was excited that so many in New York City \u201creceived that approach well\u201d and handed Mamdani a decisive victory of more than one million<\/a> votes.<\/p>\n Mamdani is also credited with attracting Gen Z and Millennial voters through a strong social media campaign and a massive volunteer canvassing squad that churned out record numbers of youth engagement.<\/p>\n While available numbers for the Bronx don\u2019t reflect the same intensity of engagement for younger voters as Brooklyn, the hub for Mamdani\u2019s base, then-candidate Mamdani also appealed to Gen Z and Millennial Bronxites.<\/p>\n Caro Salguero is in her 20s and works in construction. She told the Bronx Times that she supports Mamdani\u2019s strong focus on affordability, say that its not just important to her, but everyone in her community. \u201cFood prices and rent prices are definitely at the top of the list for me,\u201d Salguero said.<\/p>\n She also expressed something that other Mamdani voters echoed: he\u2019s a candidate that she supports with enthusiasm, not because there\u2019s no one better.\n<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been voting in every election since I was legal to vote, and it\u2019s always been a decision that I\u2019ve felt not completely happy about with the candidates that I have to choose from,\u201d Salguero said.<\/p>\n But this election, she told the Bronx Times, something had shifted.\n<\/p>\n \u201cI feels good for honestly the first time in my life to have voted for someone that I think actually has a chance to win as a candidate that I actually like and not just a decision that I made begrudgingly because of choosing between the lesser of two evils,\u201d Salguero said.<\/p>\n Not all of the Bronx agrees<\/p>\n But data suggests not all Bronxites are enthusiastic about Mamdani\u2019s impending leadership. Pockets of the borough in the Northwest Bronx in Riverdale and Kingsbridge and the Northeast Bronx in Pelham Bay Park, City Island and Throggs Neck voted consistently for former Governor Andrew Cuomo or Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.<\/p>\n Several districts in Riverdale and Kingsbridge, within the 81st Assembly District, voted strongly in favor of Cuomo, turning out in high numbers to vote for the former governor. But its unclear if those votes were for Cuomo or against Mamdani.<\/p>\n The ongoing war in Gaza may was likely a major factor in certain neighborhoods. Jewish Bronxites make up about 22% of the population in Riverdale and Kingsbridge, according to a 2023 community survey<\/a> by the UJA Federation of New York.<\/p>\n Some Jewish New Yorkers have questioned Mamdani\u2019s public criticism of Israel, including the district\u2019s state representative, Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz. In a statement ahead of the primary election, Dinowitz urged his constituents not to rank Mamdani calling out his inexperience and railing on his criticism of Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cHis continuing fanatical hatred of Israel and support for BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) and a \u201cglobal intifada\u201d is absolutely disqualifying for someone who wants to lead the city with the largest Jewish population outside of Israel,\u201d Dinowitz said in a statement posted to social media<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mamdani also failed to garner support on the East side of the borough in more conservative neighborhoods like City Island, Pelham Bay Park and Throggs Neck.\n<\/p>\n District 13 made history<\/a> in 2023 when they elected republican Kristy Marmorato, flipping the district red for the first time in two decades. But while this year\u2019s race saw the district slide back<\/a> to the political left with Democrat Shirley Aldebol unseating Republican incumbent Marmorato, Mamdani\u2019s democratic socialist agenda may have been too far left for most, as they tended to vote for Cuomo over Mamdani.<\/p>\n The votes have been counted, but the Bronx is likely to be one of Mamdani\u2019s biggest tests once taking office. His campaign centered on affordability\u2014 and the city\u2019s crisis is centered in the Bronx. Combined with Mamdani\u2019s lukewarm showing in the primaries and flipping the borough by just over a point in the general election, Bronxites are sure to have a consequential voice in the public discussion of the new mayor\u2019s performance.<\/p>\n \t