This week, a deep split over the Israel-Gaza war manifested itself in the election of a progressive challenger, Brad Lander, to defeat US Congressman Dan Goldman in the 10th congressional district. It was a big blow for candidates backed by the New York mayor, a democratic socialist who wants to bring the Democratic Party to the left, and capped a perfect sweep by him and his allies.
Former City Comptroller endorsed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Lander, defeated Goldman by a wide margin with 65.7% of the votes to 34.1%. He was criticized in his own district for his pro-Israel views, as he was the two-term incumbent, who was an heir to the Levi Strauss fortune and led the 2019 Trump impeachment inquiry. In the meantime, Israel accuser Lander, whose allegations of genocide are so egregious that he is currently being investigated by the International Criminal Court, presented his victory as an “order for leadership” that would be able to “resist authoritarianism.” Goldman accepted the loss humbly, “respecting the voters’ choice.
Two other democratic socialists, both endorsed by Mamdani, won on Tuesday in a sign of a healthy leftist push for the party. Valdez of the 7th district was the winner of Assemblyman Antonio Reynoso’s race in Brooklyn.
Meanwhile in the 13th district, college student (and doctoral student) Darializa Avila Chevalier defeated five-term incumbent Adriano Espaillat, who was a pro-Palestinian demonstrator at Columbia University. Espaillat is also chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, an organization which fights for legislation and resources for Hispanic Americans. Mamdani congratulated Chevalier for her win, noting that she is a person “of clarity, conscience and conviction.
Political newcomers and outsiders had to struggle in affluent, Mamdani’s non-endorsement 12th district. Conservative lawyer George Conway, founder of anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project, was just about 6% of the vote. Likewise, Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of John F. Kennedy, a correspondent for Vogue magazine and one of the weirder of the social media commentators, lost a well-attended race to former Congressman Jerry Nadler’s aide, Micah Lasher.
The Progressive Push and Establishment Pushback
The primary wins were seen as an opportunity for change, with Mamdani stressing a political agenda based on putting the working class citizens first rather than corporations, and through measures such as taxing the rich and increasing social spending. The Mayor pointed out that the results were in regard to electing better Democrats, not more. All three of his backed candidates have promised to end ICE, taxes the rich, and have charged Israel with genocide, which Israel denies.
These endorsements helped to solidify Mamdani’s political influence, but also immediately garnered responses from both sides. Wrapping up the results, Donald Trump branded Goldman “weak and pathetic” and reiterated his previously made claims about him being a “communist,” which the Mayor steadfastly denies.
While the leftward trend seems to be gaining on America’s biggest city, establishment Democrats have cautioned that left-wing candidates could fail to resonate with swing voters in the fall midterm elections. Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of the House of Representatives downplayed the significance of the New York primary, saying a few results in isolated parts of the country won’t change the party’s essence.
