AOC and Bernie rally for Zahran Mamdani as early voting begins in the New York City mayor’s race

New York Progressive superstars Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vermont, are teaming up with New York City mayoral candidate Zahran Mamdani on Sunday night for a “New York is Not for Sale” rally at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, New York City.

The high-profile campaign event comes about a week before Election Day, as New Yorkers head to the polls on the first weekend of early voting, ending a contentious mayoral battle as Mamdani’s unexpected success catapulted him to the national stage.

“Zahran Mamdani offers a different model of politics,” Sanders, the former Democratic presidential candidate and longtime progressive leader, said in a statement before the rally.

The trio of self-identified Democratic Socialists have energized the Democratic Party’s progressive base at a time when Democrats are still grappling with devastating losses in 2024 amid growing dissatisfaction with President Donald Trump’s sweeping agenda for his second term.

Bernie Sanders rips Democratic leaders over snubbing Mamdani in Mayoral race: ‘This is our guy!’

When Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez teamed up for a “Fight Oligarchy” tour earlier this year, they caused a sensation, galvanizing thousands of Democrats at rallies across the US who were left without a clear party leader.

Bernie Sanders and Zahran Mamdani team up to fight oligarchy in New York City

“As mayor, he will not run a top-down administration, funded by billionaires, run by consultants,” Sanders said. “Instead, Zahran will be a champion for the working people of New York.”

Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez campaigned alongside Mamdani in his bid to lead the nation’s most populous city.

On Friday evening, Sanders appeared at a “Get Out the Vote” virtual event with Mamdani. Last month, Sanders and Mamdani teamed up for a “Fight Oligarchy” City Council meeting in Brooklyn.

Before the event at Brooklyn City Hall, the two progressive leaders marched alongside union members in a Labor Day parade in Manhattan. That afternoon, Mamdani I posed for the photo With Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez in Astoria, Queens, garnering millions of views.

Sanders, a two-time Democratic presidential nominee, was an early supporter of Mamdani’s primary campaign, along with Ocasio-Cortez. Their endorsement helped Mamdani bolster progressive support in the field of 11 candidates during the final weeks of the primary race.

Mamdani’s initial upset sparked a political earthquake when the Democratic socialist easily defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was widely expected to secure the Democratic nomination.

Mamdani’s endorsement with fellow progressive New York City Comptroller Brad Lander paved the way for Mamdani to consolidate support against Cuomo through vote-by-choice.

Cuomo has since launched an independent campaign, beginning a competitive and contentious general election battle.

Since Mamdani received the Democratic nomination, Trump has called him a “100% communist lunatic” and a “little communist,” catapulting Mamdani onto the national political stage. Mamdani has rejected this title, stressing that he identifies as a democratic socialist, like Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez.

And when Trump began criticizing Mamdani, New York Democrats chose to withhold their endorsement of the socialist candidate, who made a slew of ambitious campaign promises, such as fast and free buses, city-run grocery stores and free childcare, which he plans to pay for through higher taxes on corporations and the top 1% of New Yorkers.

After months of withholding their endorsement, Gov. Kathy Hochul finally endorsed Mamdani last month, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries finally affirmed his support in a statement issued Friday. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has not yet endorsed it.

Pressure has mounted since Mamdani won the June Democratic primary for Mayor Eric Adams, who was also running as an independent, or Cuomo withdrew from the race to shore up support against Mamdani. Adams dropped out of the race and endorsed Cuomo on Thursday.

That pressure reached a boiling point last week as billionaires, including Red Apple Media CEO John Catsimatidis and hedge fund CEO Bill Ackman, called on Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa to withdraw from the race in order to clear the way to victory for Cuomo.

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The latest Fox News poll, conducted October 10-14, before the first general election debate last week, found Mamdani enjoying a significant lead in the race. According to the poll, Mamdani leads by 21 points among registered voters in New York City, where 49% of voters support Mamdani, while 28% support Cuomo and 13% support Saliwa.

Mamdani also rose above the 50% threshold among likely voters, receiving 52% support, while Cuomo got 28% and Sliwa got just 14%.