AOC endorses socialist Zohran Mamdani for NYC mayor

New York Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday endorsed socialist Zohran Mamdani for New York City mayor.

Mamdani is a New York State Assembly running in the Democratic primary election for mayor. He is a member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America.

“Assemblymember Mamdani has demonstrated a real ability on the ground to put together a coalition of working-class New Yorkers that is strongest to lead the pack,” Ocasio-Cortez told The New York Times on Thursday. “In the final stretch of the race, we need to get very real about that.”

The endorsement follows the chaotic Democratic primary debate on Wednesday, in which Mamdani squared off with front-runner and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and seven other candidates, The Hill news outlet reported.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) is running for reelection as an independent.

According to a recent Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill poll, Cuomo is leading in the Democratic primary's first round of voting at 35%, and Mamdani is in second place at 23%. The primary election will be conducted via ranked-choice voting, in which voters will rank up to five candidates by order of preference.

The primary election day is June 24 but early voting starts on June 14.