The surprise in New York

The results of the Democratic Party primary for New York City's (NYC's) mayoral elections have thrown up a surprise winner: Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old of mixed ethnicity, a Shia Muslim and a Democratic Socialist.

- DEVANGSHU DATTA

Ranked choice voting means the result will not be confirmed until July 1, but Mr Mamdani's lead makes his victory almost mathematically certain. NYC is a deep-blue city, with over 3.3 million registered Democratic voters compared to 558,000 Republicans. Winning the Primary, therefore, makes Mr Mamdani a shoo-in for mayor of America's largest city.

This has caused many shockwaves. Mr Mamdani's own party is worried. His victory over an established, if tainted politician, former NY Governor Andrew Cuomo, could set a precedent. The progressive elements in the Democratic Party may replicate the model: Identify deep-blue seats across America, and challenge older, more conservative Dem incumbents in primaries. This could shift the ideology of the party to the left.

Mr Mamdani's campaign focused on making NYC an affordable place to live. The Big Apple is the US' most expensive city. Its 8 million-plus inhabitants contribute $1.3 trillion to US gross domestic product (which is around $29.2 trillion) while the state of NY contributes $2.3 trillion, just behind Texas and California.