Democracy Now!’s Anjali Kamat reports on working-class South Asian support for New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. South Asian voter turnout increased by 40% during the Democratic primary, contributing to Mamdani’s upset victory against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is now running as an independent candidate. “We’ve had several South Asian or Indo-Caribbean candidates…
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Taya Graham and Stephen Janis speak with voters in Harlem just 24 hours before the NYC mayoral election about what issues are important to them, what they think of the frontrunner candidate Zohran Mamdani, what they think of his opponent, former Governor Andrew Cuomo, and what they want the mayor to do for them.
Credits:
Pre-Production: Taya Graham/Stephen Janis
Post-Production: Cameron Granadino
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.
Taya Graham:
This is Taya Graham and Stephen Janis in Harlem, New York. It’s just 24 hours before the final vote for the New York Mayor’s race. So we came to this bustling neighborhood to ask voters what issues were important to them, what they thought of the front runner, Zohran Mamdani, what they thought of his opponent, former governor Andrew Cuomo, and what they wanted the mayor to do for them. But let’s take a listen to the voters themselves. Mamdani is the front runner against former Governor Cuomo. Which one do you hope becomes Mayor of New York?
James B Cray:
Mayor Mamdani.
Taya Graham:
Wow. And now why do you choose Mamdani?
James B Cray:
Well, Mamdani speaking about a lot of things that really address the people such as housing, the transportation issues. I think he’s more at the forefront of what a lot of young people want to hear about. We’ve had FOMO and Bloombergs and the cycle just keeps on going on without a lot of our issues being addressed.
Taya Graham:
What do you think about the leading candidates?
“Vincent”:
It’s time for a change and time for new blood.
Taya Graham:
Wow. I’m impressed to hear that.
Just a year ago almost no one had ever heard of him. Just a name in a crowd. A fairly obscure member of the New York State Assembly. Just one in a packed pool of Democratic candidates running for mayor of New York City. A longshot.
Now he is the leading candidate in the city’s mayoral race next Tuesday, November 4. A democratic socialist who has ignited a movement. A glimmer of hope amid dark days. Hope for not just New York City, but elsewhere around the country, and a road map for other progressive candidates.
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Written and produced by Michael Fox.
All clips in this episode were taken from Zohran Mamdani’s Instagram page.
Resources
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4 Reasons why Trump is afraid of Zohran Mamdani
CNN Anchors shill for Cuomo as mainstream
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