In the wake of unprecedented wins across New York City, New Jersey, and Virginia, a new hope for change has arisen across the U.S.. As of November 4, Zohran Mamdani has become the first South Asian and Muslim mayor of NYC. His ambitious plan to transition New York City to a new phase of change is backed by an accomplished all woman team who are currently working on pre-transition steps to prepare to begin palpable work when Mamdani is officially inaugurated on January 1, 2026.Â
Despite the criticisms of those who claim Mamdani is “too young” for the position or “not experienced enough,” Mamdani has surrounded himself with competent and experienced professionals that include former mayors, federal officials, and nonprofit leaders. Mamdani’s transitional team will focus on integrating the city’s most ambitious policies yet including rent freezing, free bussing across the city, and city-run grocery stores funded by an increase in taxes on large corporations and the wealthy.Â
The unprecedentedly huge turnout of voters from every borough let the polls speak for themselves, giving Mamdani a generous win over both opponents, Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa. Of the 2 million votes cast in this election, one in five of these people were ages 18-29, and about 78% of those voters supported Mamdani. If anything, these results proved to me that the youth of New York, and the broader U.S. for that matter, is equipped with the voters, but have been in need of a campaign that could equip voters with the skills to take some serious action. If you’re as chronically online as me, you’ve seen how focused Mamdani’s campaign is on Generation Z; from showing up at local NYC clubs to sing karaoke, to appearing on LGBTQ+ platforms, to the viral TikTok edits that have come out of Mamdani’s clever comeback to Andrew Cuomo during a heated conversation between the mayoral candidates.Â
Social media has played a huge role in Mamdani’s success in the mayoral election, and studies have shown that four out of five young voters say they rely on social media as a platform to inform themselves about politics, specifically. This isn’t to say that Gen Z only uses social media to inform themselves, as they are most likely to inform their decisions based on a combined knowledge of media and their personal communities and organizations.Â
With this knowledge in mind, Mamdani’s campaign was centered around the collective effort of many Gen Z volunteers, with over 50,000 supporters contributing to his efforts, and that number eventually growing to over 100,000 by election night. This impressive feat of community created a real heart in his campaign strategy, relying on good old fashioned hope for the future to motivate folks to knock on doors and spread the word. With so many inspired by the charisma and kindness of Mamdani, the willingness to spread his politics for change cascaded at an impressive rate, where canvassers worked for free under the adrenaline of action (compared to Cuomo who paid canvassers to do the same).Â
This mass mobilization of effort certainly impacted the excitement of surrounding states, and even nationwide, as comments across Mamdani’s platform echoed with “that’s my mayor!”, ranging from the U.S. and across the globe. Born in Uganda, and as an immigrant to the United States, it is admirable to watch this “underdog” become a symbol for democratic strength, and more importantly a representative figure for immigrants across a city of immigrants. Starting with the mayoral victories in New Jersey and Virginia, and moving across the country as well, a “blue wave” has positively impacted many states, flipping red seats to blue with historical momentum.Â
In the spirit of progress, it is important that as a culture we do not take this as a sign to become complacent. While this message of liberation has broken democrats out of despair, it is still up to the youth to carry this stimulating outcome to communities and governments alike, and propel these approaches for change into the future.Â