New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani waves during a campaign rally at Forest Hills Stadium in New York.
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It’s been years since Democratic voter Lea Ash felt hopeful about politicians, but things have changed recently.
“He’s really been the only bright spot for me this year,” she said. “(He) wants to listen to the people he is trying to govern.”
The 26-year-old is referring to Democratic New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, whose campaign focused on affordability issues. For that reason, he easily gets Ash’s vote. She lived in the city where he ran. Instead, she lives more than 1,200 miles away.
“I’d like to believe that one day there could be a Zohran Mamdani in Gulfport, Mississippi, but I don’t think that will ever happen, at least not in my lifetime.” Ash said, acknowledging her careful conservative roots. “But it gives us hope that it can happen in other places around the country.”
In just a few months, Mamdani, a 34-year-old state representative and democratic socialist, has gone from a viable fringe candidate to a national figure. June primary election for voters ages 18 to 29 Highest voter turnout among all age groups.
Now, ahead of Election Day, Mamdani appears to be the clear frontrunner, ahead of his closest rival, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Mamdani expects youth coalitions to reemerge. But his pledge to tackle rising costs appears to resonate with young people outside the five boroughs. It’s a message they say speaks to their most pressing concerns at a time when many Gen Z and millennials feel hopeless about their leaders and yearn for new voices willing to break political norms.
“If a candidate can talk about the public’s concerns and demonstrate those concerns … I think that has a huge impact, especially for young people,” said Ruby Belle Booth, who studies young voters at CIRCLE, a nonpartisan research organization.
“They really feel heard and respected,” she added. “I think any candidate could do that and be successful, but now it’s Mamdani and maybe it was (President) Trump before that.”
Local movements for Mamdani spread across the country
Ash said he has always voted Democratic, despite living in ruby-red Mississippi. But in recent years she has felt frustrated and ignored by political leaders.
It feels even worse because of your financial situation. The pandemic cut her college days short and she had difficulty finding work, forcing her to return home. Now, several years later, even with her job, she can’t afford to get her own place.
Giving up on that goal was a hard pill to swallow, she says.
“(My mom) got married in her 20s, and by this time she and dad owned a house, and I couldn’t even afford to pay rent in a city in Mississippi,” she said. highest poverty rate In the country. “It’s a little demoralizing.”
But Ash hopes that if Mamdani wins, it will send a message to Democrats in other cities across the country to take issues like housing affordability more seriously.
Zohran Mamdani sits with attendees to watch “The Cost of Living Classic” soccer tournament in New York City on October 19, 2025.
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Focus on the economy and break the status quo
Mamdani campaigned on numerous promises, particularly those related to housing. Specifically, he pledged to freeze rents for rent-stabilized housing and build 200,000 new apartments for low- and moderate-income New Yorkers. These proposals are part of his larger, more ambitious platform aimed at lowering prices, from creating city-run grocery stores to making city buses and child care free.
Critics on the left say these ideas are unrealistic even in liberal bastions like New York City. Among conservatives, including Trump, Mamdani’s views were evaluated as extreme or dangerous.
But those warnings don’t seem to faze many young Americans, who seem most drawn to his message of Democratic or Republican political labels.
“Mamdani is a candidate who, rather than representing the status quo, actively challenges the status quo in a variety of ways,” Booth said.
She points to: CIRCLE Survey As of this spring, only 16% of people under 30 say they believe democracy is working for them. Booth argues that this does not indicate that voters are as excited about politics as usual.
Although they have very different ideologies, Booth argues that Trump has tapped into a similar anti-establishment mentality over the past year. The biggest issue for 18- to 29-year-olds last fall was the economy, and voters who prioritized the economy were also more likely to vote for the president. According to a CIRCLE analysis of 2024 AP VoteCast data:.
“I think what we’ve been seeing is that young people are not really thinking about politics in terms of two political parties and are evaluating politics more in terms of the issues they really care about,” Booth said.
Emily Wilson, a 26-year-old Democrat, argues that concerns about affordability should transcend partisanship. The St. Petersburg, Florida, resident said she supports Mamdani from afar and often discusses politics at the spa where her colleagues work.
“Grocery prices, bus prices, rent, etc. are issues that affect both Democrats and Republicans,” Wilson said.
She acknowledges that some may see Mamdani’s candidacy as too radical outside of New York, but argues that a candidate who knows the community well can be effective when delivering a similar economic message.
“I think if a Floridian or a Texan were talking about the same issues that Zohran talks about, they would find the same appeal,” she said.
Daisy Lupa, 25, who lives in a small town near Ann Arbor in northern Michigan, felt similarly. Having reluctantly supported the National Democratic Party in recent years, she finds Mamdani’s campaign refreshing and believes many of his proposals could benefit communities like hers.
“I think a lot of the things he’s trying to push for in New York are things that we need even more in rural areas and the Midwest because we don’t have any,” she said.
“New York is flawed,” she added. “Not here.”
cautious optimism
Of course, the key question for those who can actually vote in New York’s mayoral election is whether Mamdani can truly solve the affordability crisis.
For 32-year-old Dillon Robertson, money is a constant worry. He commutes to college in Connecticut and plans to graduate with nearly $250,000 in student loans. He says he supports Mamdani and that many of her cost-cutting proposals could make his life easier, but at the same time he worries about whether they are all possible.
“A lot of what he says sounds good, but we both wonder if he can do it. Can he do it?” he said “Or is it like a band-aid on a leaky boat?”
Nonetheless, he admits that if there is a choice to keep trying or try something new, he is ready to give it a try.
