Mamdani's victory shows how much charisma and knowing your voters matter in politics

New York city is not New York state. New York state is not the United States. The United States is not the United Kingdom. So I commend the boldness, but question the wisdom of those who think they can make definitive forecasts about the future of British politics from the election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of the Big Apple.

- Andrew Rawnsley

Zack Polanski, the former hypnotherapist who leads the Greens, has not met the new mayor but hails the victor as "the beginning of something new" and won't mind at all if you'd like to draw comparisons with himself. A jubilant Zarah Sultana, who posted a picture of herself with the man of the moment, welcomed him on behalf of the new (name still pending) party of the left, which celebrated him as a demonstration "that the old politics of the centre is bankrupt and a new socialist politics can take its place". Each is seeking a mixture inspiration and vindication from the triumph of the self-styled democratic socialist in the citadel of US capitalism. More centrist figures are also excited. Sir Sadiq Khan, the mayor of our largest city and a man who doesn’t flinch at a cliche, thinks the win represents a victory for “hope over fear”. Wes Streeting, the health secretary, sagely opines that there are "lessons for progressives the world over".

The trick is working out which are the correct lessons to take away from what is undoubtedly a stunning achievement by someone who started the campaign as an obscure member of the state assembly and was a household name only among his own family. The wrong place to start is with his ideological complexion. The right place to begin is with his campaign character. He is an eloquent and energising personality who can connect with voters, turn a phrase and perform eye-catching stunts. Turnout was the highest in generations, particularly among under-30s, partly because he excels at the attention economy of social media.