After winning the Democratic primary for NYC mayor, Zohran Mamdani is flying high as he leads in polls for today’s mayoral election. These past months, his face has filled screens and neighborhoods all across New York City, accompanied by a delightful smile and a campaign that promises the things most, if not all, New Yorkers want and need. His most prominent and attractive promise is “…to lower the cost of living for working-class New Yorkers.” (Zohran for NYC)
However, upon closer examination, we learn that Mamdani has little possibility of executing any of his goals. Moreover, they pose a threat to the city’s stability, safety and well-being. His economic policies will most negatively affect the people he claims to represent: the city’s poorest residents. Additionally, his plans to lower crime rates are misguided, and his past tweets on the NYPD show that he is not fit to lead our city. Mamdani has utilized his political savvy and strategic messaging to persuade many educated voters that opposing him means opposing helping the underprivileged. But in reality, the very liberal views that are centered around helping the less fortunate that many New Yorkers stand for would be threatened by Mamdani being in office.
Mamdani aims to achieve his main goal, making New York City affordable, through socialist policies like free buses, rent freezes, free childcare and raising the minimum wage. To implement these expensive policies, he plans to significantly raise taxes on the top 1% and big corporations. (Zohran For NYC) On the surface, these policies sound great: redistribution of wealth from people who simply don’t need it to people who really do. Yet, experts claim and history shows that these policies have damaging long-term effects, and ultimately hurt the people they claim to help.
“Command-and-control economic policies,” writes the Washington Post, “will hurt the city’s poorest residents the most.” When the government tightly regulates prices and services rather than allowing the market to remain free, prices rise, job opportunities dwindle and essentials like food are harder to afford. As the NYT editorial board points out, policies like “rent freezes …restrict housing supply and make it harder for younger New Yorkers and new arrivals to afford housing.” (JNS) When landlords cannot afford the rising costs of maintaining their buildings, many will choose to either neglect their properties or convert them into commercial buildings, effectively removing them from the market altogether. Consequently, there will be fewer houses on the market, and, in a society where so many are already struggling to become homeowners, this goal will become even more out of reach. Similarly, placing higher taxes on the rich will drive businesses out of the city, taking away jobs and opportunities from the working class.
Though Mamdani claims to know exactly how to pay for these costly policies, he refuses to consider how the people from whom he plans to raise the money, the richest and most mobile New Yorkers, will simply leave if taxes are raised. Who, then, will fund his costly promises? Mamadani’s economic policies are based on flawed logic that will undermine the very communities he is trying to help.
In the eye-opening op-ed titled, “Want to know how a socialist mayor would govern New York City? Ask Chicago,” the Chicago Tribune editorial board offers a warning against Zohran Mamdani from a place of real experience. The article compares Mamdani to their mayor, Brandon Johnson, someone who shares very similar radical views with Mamdani. Although Johnson doesn’t consider himself a democratic socialist, he holds principles very similar to those of Mamdani. Johnson’s main goal, like Mamdani’s, was to “lift up the most vulnerable.” (NBC NEWS) He wanted to help the most needy, but like Mamdani, his plans were costly. Johnson tried to increase taxes multiple times and failed. He could not collect enough money to implement his policies and instead brought his city into more debt. “His [Johnson’s] city is broke, but he wants to spend more.” (Chicago Tribune) And it is not just the Chicago editorial board who are disappointed with Johnson. “Johnson’s approval rating cratered in his second year — a reflection of how quickly progressive promises collapsed under the weight of governance and Chicago’s financial reality.” (Chicago Tribune) Mamdani claims to differ drastically from Johnson, but they have too similar of plans and policies for New Yorkers to reasonably expect a different outcome.
The issue of crime has been among the key campaign issues of this mayoral race. (CBS News) Although Mamdani’s plan to improve crime is unique, it is not effective. If elected, he says, he will create a Department of Community Safety to “…prevent violence before it happens by prioritizing solutions which have been consistently shown to improve safety.” (Zohran For NYC) But, like his economic policies, these claims are misguided. His solution will send social workers to crime scenes instead of the NYPD. (Amsterdam News) The Washington Post points out that “A retreat from policing will degrade public spaces, as it did in cities across the country after 2020.” As New Yorkers, we should learn from our mistakes, not repeat them. Mamadani’s one billion dollar goal to shrink the police force that keeps us safe is yet another plan to spend money he doesn’t have on a policy that won’t work.
Mamdani’s past public comments on the NYPD have resurfaced and should be scaring any New Yorker who values the integrity of their leader. In the article titled, “Zohran Mamdani’s 2020 Twitter meltdowns shows he’s no leader socialist threatens to bring NYC back to the bad old days,” The New York Post writes, “ In moments of crisis, leaders should be calm and dignified. They should inspire confidence and foster unity. How did mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani react to the crisis that was 2020? Apparently, by having an all-out meltdown on social media.” Mamadani called to “defund the NYPD.” Many of his supporters will confidently disregard his past tweets because he has taken them back since running for mayor. He said in the mayoral debate, “I am looking to work with police officers. Not to defund the NYPD.” (Daily Caller) But how convenient is it that he has a sudden change of heart when he is trying to win an election? On one level, it’s concerning that Mamdani, despite not holding any sort of absolute leadership position, can’t keep his cool in stressful situations, impulsively tweeting things during the chaos that was 2020 and later taking them back. On another level, why should we trust someone who might as well be changing their views for show? If you disagree with Mamdani’s past statements, you might want to rethink why you have any reason to believe he has changed.
New York State Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs writes, “The competition to define the Democrats in 2028 will be intense, and moderates don’t need to preemptively capitulate by falling in line behind Mamdani.” (The Washington Post) Fieldston is one of the most progressive high schools in America. Zohran Mamdani’s policies may sound progressive, but in reality, they will do anything but promote social progress and growth.
