Little did anyone know about Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the race to mayor from New York, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez soon hailed the Democratic candidate on social media for his “historic victory”, guaranteeing “nothing is impossible”, with a photograph of the two together, smiling. The New York congresswoman was one of the supporters of Mamdani’s campaign, which won over New Yorkers with promises of free transportation and daycare, low-cost housing and a network of city-run stores with low prices. And not even the attacks from President Donald Trump, who called him a “communist” and an enemy of the Jews for supporting the Palestinian cause, having supported the formermayor Andrew Cuomo (who ran as an independent after being defeated by Mamdani in the Democratic primaries), were enough to stop this 34-year-old Muslim, born in Uganda, but of Indian origins.
AOC, as she is known, stood alongside Mamdani last month at a rally in Queens under the slogan “New York is not for sale.” And with the midterm elections a year away, in which Democrats hope to regain control of at least one of the chambers of Congress, this result in New York – and the victories also for the governors of Virginia and New Jersey – may have given the Democratic Party the optimism it so desperately needed. Somewhat lethargic since Kamala Harris’ defeat against Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election, the more moderate wing of the Democrats began to distrust Mamdani’s progressive and often radical positions, but ended up surrendering to his ability to mobilize, especially young people, with a message of authenticity.
The question that arises now is whether Mamdani’s victory could open the door to AOC’s already much talked about presidential candidacy. The 36-year-old congresswoman is seen as a liberal by supporters, but as a dangerous left-wing radical by detractors. And even within the party, his positions – such as supporting worker cooperatives, healthcare for all, free public universities, ending ICE (the US Immigration and Border Control Service) or imposing a 70% tax rate on the rich to finance a New Deal for the climate – are considered extreme by more moderates.
The truth is that this moderate wing has had difficulty getting results in this Trump era, with the Republican beating Hillary Clinton in 2016, only to lose to Biden in 2020, but coming back to defeat Kamala Harris in 2024. With potential 2028 candidates piling up in the Democratic field – from California Governor Gavin Newsom to former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, an AOC could cause surprises in the primaries. A bit like Trump himself in 2016, beating more traditional rivals like Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz.
There are three years left until the presidential elections and the data has already been cast. But America is not New York.
Executive editor of Diário de Notícias