The New York Times editorial board is declining to offer an endorsement in the NYC mayoral primary set for June 24 because they do not believe a “great mayor” for the city exists among the 11 candidates vying for the Democratic nomination. Still, two frontrunners have emerged: former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and progressive state legislator Zohran Mamdani.
While early voting has already begun, the editorial board is making its concerns known, particularly about the AOC-backed progressive who represents a district in Queens.
Mr. Mamdani, a charismatic 33-year-old, is running a joyful campaign full of viral videos in which he talks with voters. He offers the kind of fresh political style for which many people are hungry during the angry era of President Trump.
Unfortunately, Mr. Mamdani is running on an agenda uniquely unsuited to the city’s challenges. He is a democratic socialist who too often ignores the unavoidable trade-offs of governance. He favors rent freezes that could restrict housing supply and make it harder for younger New Yorkers and new arrivals to afford housing. He wants the government to operate grocery stores, as if customer service and retail sales were strengths of the public sector. He minimizes the importance of policing.
Most worrisome, he shows little concern about the disorder of the past decade, even though its costs have fallen hardest on the city’s working-class and poor residents. Mr. Mamdani, who has called Mr. de Blasio the best New York mayor of his lifetime, offers an agenda that remains alluring among elite progressives but has proved damaging to city life.
Mr. Mamdani would also bring less relevant experience than perhaps any mayor in New York history. He has never run a government department or private organization of any size. As a state legislator, he has struggled to execute his own agenda. A telling example came last year. Given an opportunity to expand a pilot program offering free bus rides, one of his signature issues, he instead engaged in a performative protest that doomed the policy, New York magazine reported. He seems to lack the political savvy and instinct for compromise that has made Senator Bernie Sanders, his fellow democratic socialist, an effective legislator. (NYT)
While the Times also dishes out a fair amount of criticism for Cuomo, they conclude that Mamdani shouldn't be in the race at all.
"We do not believe that Mr. Mamdani deserves a spot on New Yorkers’ ballots," the editorial board states. "His experience is too thin, and his agenda reads like a turbocharged version of Mr. de Blasio’s dismaying mayoralty. As for Mr. Cuomo, we have serious objections to his ethics and conduct, even if he would be better for New York’s future than Mr. Mamdani."
The editorial board notes that they hope whoever becomes mayor is ultimately successful, but that they're "rooting for a stronger field in the 2029 election."
New York Times opens with a dire warning against voting for Zohran.
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) June 16, 2025
“Mr. Mamdani would also bring less relevant experience than perhaps any mayor in New York history. We do not believe that Mr. Mamdani deserves a spot on New Yorkers’ ballots.”
They don’t even mention his… pic.twitter.com/CH2Eu8hO68
Bill de Blasio put New York on life support, Zohran Mamdani would be the nail in the coffin. pic.twitter.com/KjHAbvcViW
— Ryan James Girdusky (@RyanGirdusky) June 13, 2025
Zohran Mamdani is such a bad candidate for NYC mayor that Queens’ largest newspaper put out an anti-endorsement, just on him.#DontRankMamdani pic.twitter.com/RvmFpUWiPI
— Jean (@queens_parents) June 14, 2025
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