Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani received unexpected praise from prominent Republicans Tucker Carlson and Marjorie Taylor Greene following his success in the New York City mayoral Democratic primary.
Mamdani unofficially led the primary on Tuesday with 43 percent of first-round votes, prompting his main rival, former Governor Andrew Cuomo, to concede defeat.
Although Mamdani did not surpass the 50 percent threshold needed for an outright win, it is widely anticipated he will ultimately secure the nomination after the ranked-choice voting process concludes.
On Friday, conservative figures Carlson and Greene expressed surprise in praising Mamdani’s approach and focus.
Carlson remarked on Mamdani’s likely future role running the nation’s largest city, noting Mamdani was the only candidate in the mayoral debate who emphasized prioritizing New York City residents.
During the debate, candidates were asked where their first international trip would be as mayor. Most, including Cuomo, said Israel, but Mamdani stated he would remain in the city to focus on local issues.
Mamdani, 33, is known for his pro-Palestine stance and controversially stated he would arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if Netanyahu visited New York City.
Despite this, Mamdani has shown support for Jewish New Yorkers and campaigned in synagogues across all five boroughs, the Daily Mail reported.
“You don’t need to travel to Israel to stand up for Jewish New Yorkers,” Mamdani said during the debate.
Both Carlson and Greene agreed Mamdani’s response was the correct one, despite opposing much of his platform.
Mamdani’s campaign focuses on addressing New York’s affordability crisis with proposals such as free public buses, city-run grocery stores offering lower prices, and universal free childcare.
Carlson said he opposed Mamdani’s ideas but appreciated that the candidate focused on economics rather than foreign policy.
Greene criticized Cuomo, highlighting his 2021 resignation amid sexual harassment allegations and accusations of covering up COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.
Greene argued New Yorkers rejected Cuomo again because his leadership did not improve their living conditions.
“They already had him and still face the same problems — poverty and lack of opportunity,” Greene said.
Greene also noted Mamdani’s background, mentioning his immigrant status and socialist views, but emphasized Mamdani’s connection with voters by addressing their real-life struggles.
Mamdani moved to the U.S. from Uganda at age seven. Although born abroad, he became a U.S. citizen in 2018.
While Mamdani has spoken about defunding the police in the past, his current campaign does not support defunding.
Instead, he proposes creating a mental health professional team to assist the homeless, aiming to relieve police of responsibilities beyond crime fighting.
Greene expressed frustration with Republicans, saying young voters felt compelled to support Mamdani due to GOP failures.
New York City is predominantly Democratic, with 3.1 million registered Democrats compared to around 460,000 Republicans, per 2020 data.
There are also 100,000 registered independents and 866,000 unaffiliated voters in the city.
Republican Curtis Sliwa is the only GOP candidate running for mayor, while incumbent Eric Adams, a Democrat who voted in the primary, is running for re-election as an independent.
The post Tucker Carlson Praises NYC Socialist Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani appeared first on Resist the Mainstream.
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Author: Anthony Gonzalez
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