Trump has already won the election in which he is not even running. “It's a 360-kilogram gorilla”
If he wins [socjalista z Partii Demokratycznej] only 34 years old Zohran Mamdanithe president will gain a far-left opponent whom he will be able to demonize, using federal power to punish cities with strong democratic traditions. If this [umiarkowany polityk z Partii Demokratycznej] Andrew Cuomo emerges victorious, Trump will gain a new advantage over his old rival, who faces a potential Justice Department investigation into whether he lied to Congress.
Trump has already made an impact at New York City Hall: Federal corruption charges against incumbent Democrat Eric Adams were dropped this year after he moved closer to the White House. This move deepened resentment towards him and ultimately forced him to withdraw from [kolejnych] elections [na burmistrza Nowego Jorku].
“Trump is in a good position regardless of what happens on November 4,” said the Rev. Ruben Diaz, a former state and city lawmaker and Trump ally. — Whoever wins will have to face Trump, and none of them will be able to beat him. Each of them will lose the fight against Trump. He's an 800-pounder [360-kilogramowym] gorilla, Diaz adds.
It's hard not to see the deeper meaning of this race [o fotel burmistrza Nowego Jorku]. With less than a year until the midterm elections, a Mamdani victory would give Trump a strong example of a “leftist way of governing.” He could use it as an argument to support his warnings about what happens when progressives run big cities. Any political move by a democratic socialist could become fuel for the Republican campaign and a political problem for Democrats across the country.
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New York's mayoral election: a fight in the shadow of a serious crisis
Regardless of who wins, the city's next mayor will inherit a severe housing affordability crisis, while New Yorkers themselves will struggle with rising rents, grocery prices and child care costs. Still, the focus of City Hall next year will likely be on Trump's quest to impose his will on the city, from expanding immigration enforcement to freezing billions of dollars in infrastructure funding and even sending federal troops onto the city's streets.
Trump's impulse to subdue New York clashes with Democratic voters' desire to fight the president and stop his actions. The new mayor will have to find a balance between the city's needs and the political necessity of fighting the president.
The dynamics of the relationship with Trump – and whether it will be possible to establish a relationship similar to the one Trump maintains in direct communication with the Democratic governor [stanu Nowy Jork] Kathy Hochul – Will have a decisive influence on the election winner's first term. The race has become a microcosm for a directionless Democratic Party — a battle between the moderate Cuomo and the leftist Mamdani.
Trump has shown great interest in his hometown leadership election, where the Trumps have significant business interests. He often comments on the race and is dismissive of Mamdani and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, who has little chance of winning.
Andrew Cuomo: Nobody fought Trump like I did
Cuomo, a former governor who resigned amid a sexual harassment scandal and has denied all allegations, says he is the best candidate to take on Trump, whom he has known for decades (Trump appeared in a video of Cuomo's 1990 bachelor party). The two argued over COVID-19 policy and federal funding for the Gateway rail tunnel [pod rzeką Hudson, który ma połączyć Manhattan w Nowym Jorku z New Jersey]. Cuomo emphasized their shared roots in [dzielnicy Nowego Jorku] Queens, plus they both have a reputation for being very transactional in negotiations.
Former Governor and current New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo during a press conference in New York, U.S., August 7, 2025.SARAH YENESEL / PAP
The former New York governor was already a target of the Trump administration during his first term in the White House. Investigations [wymierzone w Cuomo] — including a pandemic-related investigation — never led to charges against him. The Justice Department's inspector general later concluded that the COVID-19 investigation was politically motivated.
— Nobody fought Trump like me. No one suffered the same consequences as I did for fighting him. “I have been under investigation by the Department of Justice for years because I stood up to Trump,” Cuomo said Monday.
Cuomo also escalated his rhetoric, suggesting in last week's debate that he would ask the New York Police Department to intervene in the Immigration Customs Enforcement agency. [ICE, które robią naloty na miejsca zamieszkania i pracy nieudokumentowanych imigrantów w USA] — which could trigger a confrontation with federal authorities.
The former governor believes the inexperienced Mamdani is too weak to take on Trump, saying the president will “cut through him like a hot knife through butter.”
But Cuomo, who lost the June Democratic primary to Mamdani, has vulnerabilities himself that Trump will also be able to exploit.
Last year, Republican members of the House of Representatives accused the former governor of lying during testimony before a committee investigating his administration's policies and actions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this year, Republican lawmakers referred the case to the Justice Department. Cuomo has denied all allegations and says the perjury charges are politically motivated by Republicans who are sharpening their claws against him.
However, the danger is obvious. Trump's Justice Department has shown a willingness to prosecute his political enemies, including New York State Attorney General Letitia James, who has pleaded not guilty to mortgage fraud charges.
“Mr. Trump's model seems pretty clear,” says Democratic state Sen. Liz Krueger, who chairs the powerful Senate Finance Committee. “If you get in legal trouble, you either go to jail for it or you do something for him, and then maybe he'll let you go, or maybe he'll drop the charges.” “What concerns me much more as a New Yorker is that Andrew Cuomo can still become mayor and then be subject to Donald Trump's orders or orders,” she adds.
Zohran Mamdani: A “little communist” eager to fight Trump
Cuomo is making a concerted effort in the final days of the campaign to win over Republican voters — including New Yorkers who supported Trump in the Democratic-dominated city. But the president virtually admitted that Cuomo has little chance of winning, considering Mamdani's double-digit lead in the polls. So Trump directed most of his public criticism at the leading democratic socialist.
The president called Mamdani a “little communist” and warned that if Mamdani won, aid to the city would be significantly reduced, arguing that he did not want the Democratic politician from Queens to abuse the funds. Trump's allies in Congress, such as Republican Congressman Andy Ogles, have considered deporting the Ugandan-born Democratic candidate, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen.
Mamdani, like Democrats across the country, vowed to fight Trump on all fronts. But he also extended an olive branch of sorts, appearing on Fox News this month and citing a shared desire to address the cost of living issue. Both Mamdani and Trump have an extremely loyal support base — a stronghold that allows them to pursue opposing political agendas.
Senator Bernie Sanders (L), Democratic candidate for New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani (C), and U.S. House of Representatives Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez during the “New York is not for sale” rally in Queens, New York, October 26, 2025.PAP/EPA/SARAH YENESEL / PAP
As Democrats consider how best to engage with the fickle president, Mamdani will likely be eager to take on him.
— The president was quite effective in exploiting disagreements with the mayor of Chicago and the governor of California when there were differences in political views, notes former Republican city councilor Joe Borelli. “The difference with Mamdani is that he will be a willing fighting partner. He wants to be the voice of the socialist movement, not of local issues, he adds.
Curtis Silwa: the third one
Sliwa, a Republican candidate with little chance of winning, has the most complex relationship with the president — a shared history that dates back to when the two were tabloid stars in the 1980s. Trump ridiculed the two-time GOP mayoral candidate, saying he wasn't ready for primetime [bycie na świeczniku, dosł. w najlepszym czasie antenowym]and mocked him for living in an apartment with many cats. Trump clearly did not support his party's leader.
Curtis Silwa during the Columbus Day Parade in New York City on October 9, 2023.GORDON DONOVAN / NURPHOTO / NURPHOTO VIA AFP / AFP
But Sliwa, who needs to win over Trump's small but vocal voter base in Republican strongholds like Staten Island, took a conciliatory stance when discussing the president. He criticized Cuomo and Mamdani during a recent debate for promising to confront Trump, arguing that fighting a determined federal administration would do no good.
During the last debate, Sliwa said it was best to negotiate and “show respect” to the president. In an interview, the Republican candidate said that despite his “positive-negative relationship” with Trump, the next mayor of New York must tread carefully.
“He has all the cards in his hand,” Sliwa said. “He's got New York by the throat. There is no need to bow down or submit to Donald Trump. But it must be recognized that he is in charge.
