Polls close in New York City as Mamdani faces Cuomo in a generational battle for mayor

NEW YORK AP Polls have closed in the New York City mayor s race a generational and ideological contest between a democratic socialist and former governor that will resonate across the nation Zohran Mamdani who won the Democratic primary earlier this year faces former Gov Andrew Cuomo who is running as an independent and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa who is trying to land a massive upset Voters came out in huge numbers Tuesday According to the city s Board of Elections more than million voters cast ballots the first time that has happened in a New York mayoral race since A preeminence for Mamdani would give the city its first Muslim mayor and its youngest leader in generations while elevating the democratic socialist to political stardom and giving his brand of economic populism one of the the greater part visible political perches in America If Cuomo comes out on top he will have staged a remarkable political comeback four years after resigning as governor over a barrage of sexual harassment claims For Sliwa the creator of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group and a longtime New York tabloid fixture a win would put a Republican in charge of the nation s largest city at a time when countless New Yorkers are seeking a leader who can keep President Donald Trump at bay Mamdani and Cuomo voted Tuesday morning in Queens and Manhattan respectively while Sliwa had already cast his ballot during early voting The race has made Mamdani a national figure as he has drawn the ire of Trump and other Republicans who have tried to cast him as the face of a new more radical Democratic Party Trump has also threatened to take over the city if Mamdani wins as well as arrest and deport the state assembly member who was born in Uganda but is a U S citizen Trump reluctantly endorsed Cuomo on the eve of the voting process saying Mamdani would bring tragedy to the city and encouraging Sliwa backers to vote for the former governor instead A rematch with key differences Mamdani a -year-old state lawmaker already defeated Cuomo once in the Democratic primary energizing progressives to tally a surprise supremacy over the once-powerful former governor with a campaign that focused on lowering the cost of living in one of the country s preponderance expensive cities This time Cuomo is counting on backing from moderates and Republicans And he s hoping incumbent Mayor Eric Adams late exit from the race and eventual endorsement will give him a boost among their overlapping bases of centrists Black voters and ultra-Orthodox Jews He s also received the endorsement of former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg a billionaire who donated million to a super PAC supporting Cuomo in the final days of the contest Mamdani has generated national buzz and won endorsements from big-name progressives including U S Sen Bernie Sanders and U S Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez He has proposed raising taxes on the richest New Yorkers and using the money to make city buses free and provide free universal child care He has also promised to freeze rent for people living in about million rent-regulated apartments I think he seems like he really loves this city explained Emily Edmonds-Langham as she voted for Mamdani on Tuesday in the Bronx I think he ll fight for us and make the city more affordable At the same time Mamdani s past criticism of the city s police department and the Israeli authorities s military actions in Gaza which he has called genocidal have unnerved particular centrists who see him as a possible setback in their effort to broaden the party s national appeal Particular Jewish leaders have also seized on his refusal to assistance Israel as a Jewish state calling him a danger to Jews While Mamdani has distanced himself from various of his past rhetoric on policing specific top New York Democrats remain concerned and have either been slow to endorse him or outright refused to Dr Sam Schwarz an independent who described himself as mostly conservative commented he was voting for Cuomo Number one the guy has zero experience Schwarz explained of Mamdani adding that he views the candidate as a radiating antisemite Tuesday s general referendum is being conducted as a traditional one meaning the candidate who gets the the greater part votes wins The city s party primaries were determined using ranked-choice voting which allowed voters to rank candidates in order of preference Sliwa s path to win is narrow in the overwhelmingly Democratic city resting on his ability to secure the GOP vote with his tough-on-crime message and Noo Yawk attitude while picking up moderates who don t want to elevate Mamdani or return Cuomo to power Sliwa has ignored pressure from within his own party to suspend his campaign and create a one-on-one race between Cuomo and Mamdani Trump himself dismissed Sliwa as not exactly prime time In the race s final weeks Cuomo appealed to Sliwa s supporters arguing that a vote for the Republican was a vote for Mamdani Damian Koszalka a carpenter from Queens explained he voted for Sliwa because the Republican is dedicated to the city adding that he wasn t swayed by the president s calls for voters to back Cuomo I don t give a damn you know if Trump or whoever is telling me I have to vote for this guy because that s the less evil or this and that he commented after casting his ballot It doesn t work that way Cuomo runs on his record but is dogged by his past Trump and other Republicans have eagerly painted a dire picture of New York under Mamdani s prospective leadership Cuomo has carried a similar message Running on an independent party line he has positioned himself as a seasoned executive capable of managing the city s vast bureaucracy drawing a contrast with Mamdani s relative inexperience Cuomo s experience as governor is perhaps also his biggest vulnerability He resigned in following a review from the attorney general that concluded that Cuomo had sexually harassed at least women Particular of the women complained about unwanted touches flirting kisses and suggestive comments One aide filed a police analysis accusing him of groping her breast though a district attorney declined to prosecute Cuomo initially apologized for a few of his behavior saying he had fallen out of step with what is considered appropriate workplace conduct However in current months he has been defiant calling his accusers liars and blaming his downfall on political adversaries Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz and Jake Offenhartz contributed to this statement This story has been corrected to reflect that the number of votes cast so far in New York City s mayoral race is not a record Source