The New Statesman: politics and culture Can Zohran Mamdani save the American left?
Sep 17, 2025
Guest Ross Barkan, a New Statesman columnist, discusses Zohran Mamdani's groundbreaking campaign in New York City. Born in Uganda and raised in Manhattan, Mamdani is captivating voters with progressive policies like rent freezes and free public transport. Barkan highlights the backlash from business elites due to his proposals and examines shifting attitudes among Jewish voters regarding Israel. He also connects Mamdani’s rise to a resurgence of the left, questioning if this could reshape the Democratic Party's future.
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Early Campaign Partnership
- Ross Barkan first worked with Zohran Mamdani as his campaign field director in 2017 and they remained friends afterward.
- Barkan recounts hundreds of hours canvassing together and says Mamdani always showed charisma and organizing talent.
Ambitious, Not Radical Agenda
- Mamdani's platform is ambitious but not radical by international centre-left standards, focusing on rent freezes, free buses, childcare and a few city grocery stores.
- Barkan argues these proposals are popular and achievable, which helped Mamdani build a broad coalition beyond the socialist base.
Distance From 2020 Rhetoric
- Mamdani has publicly moved away from 2020 'defund the police' rhetoric and some earlier tweets calling the NYPD racist and anti-queer.
- Barkan says Mamdani now emphasizes reallocations and alternative responders rather than wholesale defunding, tempering earlier positions for the general election.