The New York mayor’s allies defeated establishment Democrats in several key races, including pro-Israel Rep. Dan Goldman, as candidates sharply critical of Israel gained ground in Congress and state politicsA tense and rainy primary night in New York offered the clearest sign yet that the city’s Democratic Party is undergoing a major political shift, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani emerging as the central power broker behind a wave of left-wing victories that could reshape the city’s representation in Washington.Mamdani-backed candidates won a series of closely watched Democratic primaries on Tuesday night, defeating establishment figures and strengthening the influence of the progressive left in one of the most Jewish and politically important cities in the United States. For Israeli officials and pro-Israel voters in New York, the results are likely to be read as a warning sign: several of the winning candidates have taken sharply critical positions toward Israel, including accusations that Israel is committing “genocide” in Gaza and calls to restrict or halt U.S. military aid.GalleryNew York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (Photo: AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)The most dramatic upset came in New York’s 10th Congressional District, which includes Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn. Brad Lander, a former New York City comptroller and close Mamdani ally, defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman, a Jewish Democrat considered one of the more pro-Israel voices in the city’s congressional delegation.Goldman, who received support from pro-Israel donors and groups, had faced sustained criticism from the left over his stance on Israel and the war in Gaza. Lander, who is also Jewish, has described Israel’s war in Gaza as “genocide” and has said he would support restrictions on U.S. military aid to Israel.In his victory speech, Lander vowed to abolish the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, described Israel’s war in Gaza as “genocide” and referred to “Trump’s fascism.” His victory gives Mamdani a key ally in a district that includes some of the country’s most prominent Jewish and progressive communities.Mamdani celebrated the results as proof that his movement had outgrown the mayoral campaign that brought him to City Hall last year.“A year ago, it was not the end of a political movement,” Mamdani told supporters. “It was the beginning!”“The old politics that got us to this crisis is not the politics that is going to get us out of this crisis,” he added.Brad Lander (Photo: AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)In New York’s 7th Congressional District, which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens, Mamdani-backed Claire Valdez defeated Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who had been backed by retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez. The result was another blow to the city’s older progressive establishment, which had rallied behind Reynoso.Valdez, a democratic socialist state assemblywoman and former union organizer, has been a harsh critic of Israel. She has backed the “Not on Our Dime” campaign, which seeks to restrict New York-based nonprofit funding connected to Israeli settlements in the West Bank. During the campaign, she also aligned herself with calls to “Free Palestine” and “abolish ICE,” positions that helped mobilize young progressive activists but alarmed many pro-Israel Democrats.The third major Mamdani-backed victory came in New York’s 13th Congressional District, covering Upper Manhattan and parts of the Bronx. Darializa Avila Chevalier, a community organizer and Columbia University graduate, defeated veteran Rep. Adriano Espaillat, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.The race was one of the most bitter of the night. Avila Chevalier had been criticized over past social media posts and over her record of anti-Israel activism, including involvement in pro-Palestinian organizing at Columbia. During the campaign, she attacked Espaillat over his position on Israel and over his ties to pro-Israel donors.“Today we make it clear — the politics of the past ends today,” she said at her victory party, adding that “the era of taking a check and cashing a check and calling it representation is over.”She also said, “No longer will we accept a politics that throws scraps at us and acts as if we should be grateful for them.”Claire Valdez Her victory is expected to deepen concern among New York’s pro-Israel voters, particularly because of her campus activism and her criticism of U.S. support for Israel. During a recent forum, when asked about Hamas, she said she condemned the terrorist organization but argued that the focus should be on where U.S. tax dollars are going.“What I will not do is let a question be used to distract us from the documented reality that over hundreds of thousands of people, Palestinians specifically, have been killed,” she said.“While, yes, I do condemn Hamas, the problem is that our country, the thing that we can control, is where our money and our tax dollars are going,” she added. “Right now, it is going towards indiscriminate slaughter.”The results give Mamdani three new allies expected to enter Congress from safe Democratic districts in November. They also mark a direct challenge to House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who backed establishment candidates and has been a strong supporter of the U.S.-Israel relationship.Jeffries had tried to downplay Mamdani’s influence before the results came in.“We have agreed to strongly disagree,” Jeffries said of Mamdani on Capitol Hill. “There are 215 members of the House Democratic caucus. A handful of primaries that go in one direction or the other, in a given state or two, aren’t going to reshape who we are as House Democrats.”But Tuesday night’s results suggested that in New York, at least, Mamdani’s political machine can do exactly that.Mamdani did not endorse in another closely watched race, the Democratic primary in New York’s 12th Congressional District, the Manhattan seat being vacated by longtime Rep. Jerry Nadler. The district has one of the highest concentrations of Jewish voters in the United States. State Assemblyman Micah Lasher, who was backed by Nadler and former mayor Michael Bloomberg, defeated a crowded field that included Assemblyman Alex Bores and Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of President John F. Kennedy.Lasher’s win offered some relief to establishment Democrats, particularly in a district where Israel, antisemitism and the future of liberal Zionist politics remain central issues. In his victory remarks, Lasher said he wanted to “revamp and recharge the Democratic Party” and “show that Democrats in Congress have bold new ideas to improve the lives of struggling Americans and then deliver on them.”(Photo: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP)While New York City’s left celebrated, Republicans saw a Trump-backed win upstate. In New York’s 21st Congressional District, Anthony Constantino, the chief executive of Sticker Mule, defeated state Assemblyman Robert Smullen in the Republican primary for the seat vacated by Elise Stefanik.Constantino gained national attention in 2024 after placing a large “Vote for Trump” sign on the roof of his company’s headquarters. He also released a pro-Trump hip-hop album and commissioned a statue of Trump that he gave to the president in Florida. His win showed that Trump’s endorsement remains powerful in Republican primaries, even when local party figures back another candidate.For Israel, the New York results present a more complicated picture than a simple progressive sweep. Candidates sharply critical of Israel gained ground in Congress and in state politics, and Mamdani has strengthened his role as the most important left-wing power broker in the city. But establishment and pro-Israel forces were not wiped out completely, with Lasher winning the Nadler seat and other pro-Israel candidates advancing elsewhere.Still, the direction of travel is clear. In New York, long considered a center of American Jewish political power and one of Israel’s strongest bases of support in the Democratic Party, a younger and more confrontational left is gaining strength. Mamdani’s allies did not just win symbolic races. They defeated sitting members of Congress, party-backed candidates and pro-Israel incumbents.For Jerusalem, the message is hard to ignore: the Democratic Party in New York is not moving as one bloc, but its center of gravity on Israel is shifting, and the politicians most willing to challenge the old consensus are now winning.