New York’s primaries on Tuesday will test just how influential Mayor Zohran Mamdani is with voters six months into his tenure and offer a preview of the ideological battles to come as Democrats look ahead to the 2028 presidential primary.
The democratic socialist’s decision to endorse candidates in three House races — including against Democratic incumbents in two of them — has raised the stakes in contests for seats the party is all but certain to retain in November.
Those races are among several closely watched primaries in New York. They come on the same day as primaries in Maryland and Utah, and primary runoffs in South Carolina that include a Republican race for governor.
Here are Tuesday’s primaries to watch:
Mamdani endorsed former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander against 10th District Rep. Dan Goldman. Lander was one of the candidates Mamdani defeated in the mayoral race last year, but they were allied against Andrew Cuomo in the primary. He ultimately became an important validator for Mamdani with Jewish voters in the general election, though Lander didn’t get a City Hall job like originally expected.
