The New York Times editorial board has weighed in on the city’s crowded mayoral race, urging voters not to back state Assembly member Zohran Mamdani in next week’s Democratic primary despite not directly endorsing another candidate.
The Times’s editorial board, which announced last year that it would no longer endorse in local and state elections, made clear on Monday that despite its lack of formal endorsement voters should not rank Mamdani in any of the spots on their ballot.
New York City employs ranked choice voting, allowing voters to list up to five candidates in order of their preference to support.
“Mr. Mamdani, a charismatic 33-year-old, is running a joyful campaign full of viral videos in which he talks with voters. He offers the kind of fresh political style for which many people are hungry during the angry era of President Trump,” the board said. “Unfortunately, Mr. Mamdani is running on an agenda uniquely unsuited to the city’s challenges.”
The board argued the field, made up of 11 candidates, lacks anyone who seems likely to be the city’s “next great mayor,” but several candidates have “substantial strengths.” It acknowledged that polls seem to show the race is between former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), who has been the front-runner since he entered the race, and Mamdani, who has shrunk the gap behind him.
The board criticized Mamdani’s lack of experience and policy proposals, saying he “too often ignores the unavoidable trade-offs of governance.” It argued his calls for rent freezes could restrict the housing supply, rejected his support for government-run grocery stores and accused him of minimizing the importance of police.
It also raised issues with Mamdani having never run a government department or a private organization previously and a lack of execution of his agenda as a state legislator, a role he’s held since 2021.
“Mr. Mamdani, who has called [former Mayor Bill] de Blasio the best New York mayor of his lifetime, offers an agenda that remains alluring among elite progressives but has proved damaging to city life,” the editorial states.
The Hill has reached out to Mamdani’s campaign for comment.
The board said Cuomo also has “significant shortcomings,” citing his resignation as governor after multiple women made allegations of sexual harassment or undesired touching against him. Cuomo has consistently denied the accusations.
The board also noted the criticisms of Cuomo’s handling of nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic and oversight of public transit. But it acknowledged many seem to intend to vote for him because of his policy record as governor, including raising the minimum wage, implementing paid family leave, legalizing same-sex marriage in 2011 and overseeing renovations of the city’s airports and train station.
The editorial states city Comptroller Brad Lander, who has been among the next tier of candidates in polling, is an alternative to Cuomo and Mamdani. It praised Lander for moderating on certain stances, showing a “welcome ability to learn from experience” and effectively managing his office.
The editorial board said it sees arguments for ranking several candidates, including Lander for progressive voters and a candidate like businessman Whitney Tilson for moderate voters. But given the polls, it noted if and where voters rank Cuomo and Mamdani may be critical.
“We do not believe that Mr. Mamdani deserves a spot on New Yorkers’ ballots,” the board said. “His experience is too thin, and his agenda reads like a turbocharged version of Mr. de Blasio’s dismaying mayoralty. As for Mr. Cuomo, we have serious objections to his ethics and conduct, even if he would be better for New York’s future than Mr. Mamdani.”
But not ranking either candidate, it said, would be the equivalent of stating no preference.