Andrew Cuomo concedes the New York City mayoral primary to Zohran Mamdani, who leads in the first-choice vote

State Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani is the person arsenic first-choice votes are tallied successful the New York City Democratic mayoral primary, up of erstwhile New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who each but declared his rival the victor adjacent though nary campaigner appears apt to unafraid a bulk successful the archetypal circular of the ranked prime election.

Mamdani leads the first-choice ballot number with astir 44% support, followed by astir 36% for Cuomo — the effect of a accelerated emergence by Mamdani, who started the contention little-known but rapidly gained prominence arsenic the progressive alternate to Cuomo.

And portion New York City volition person to hold astatine slightest a week, perchance longer, to find retired who volition yet triumph the Democratic information done the city's ranked prime tabulations, Cuomo made wide to his supporters helium believed the timepiece was moving retired connected his comeback bid.

"Tonight was not our night. Tonight was Assemblyman Mamdani's nighttime and helium enactment unneurotic a large run and helium touched young radical and inspired them and moved them and got them to travel retired and ballot and helium truly ran a highly impactful campaign. I called him. I congratulated him," Cuomo said, asking supporters to springiness Mamdani a circular of applause.

"Tonight is his night. He deserved it, helium won."

Under ranked prime voting successful the city, voters fertile up to 5 preferences connected their ballot. Support for the lowest-finishing candidates is past reallocated to those voters' adjacent choices, and the process continues until determination are 2 candidates left.

The metropolis Board of Elections plans to merchandise the results of those archetypal allocations adjacent Tuesday. But depending connected however galore mail-in and provisional ballots inactive request to beryllium counted, it could instrumentality longer to find a winner.

The hold had been expected, considering the 11-candidate tract splitting Democratic votes. And the ranked prime strategy tin promote low-polling candidates to enactment successful due to the fact that they cognize their supporters' choices tin inactive beryllium taken into relationship if they autumn short.

If Mamdani holds onto the pb during the ranked prime voting allocation and yet wins the Democratic nomination, helium whitethorn not person afloat vanquished Cuomo. The erstwhile politician created his ain enactment and could tally successful the wide predetermination connected that party's ballot line. Speaking Tuesday night, Cuomo didn't regularisation that out, though helium besides didn't springiness an denotation helium was readying a wide predetermination bid.

Mamdani, a 33-year-old authorities assemblyman from Queens who would beryllium the city's archetypal Muslim politician if elected, has gained steam successful the closing weeks of the contention arsenic he's pitched a progressive imaginativeness for the city. He has tally an energetic run focused connected tackling higher costs, promising to frost rents and connection escaped buses, cosmopolitan childcare and different progressive policies that would beryllium paid for successful portion by raising taxes connected the rich.

He's go the focal constituent for an anti-Cuomo movement that's rallied down the banner of "Don't fertile Cuomo," arguing the erstwhile politician doesn't merit a palmy governmental comeback aft resigning from bureau successful 2021 implicit intersexual harassment allegations. Mamdani has secured cross-endorsement deals with chap candidates, including City Comptroller Brad Lander and erstwhile DNC vice seat Michael Blake.

They directed their supporters to besides fertile the different campaigner connected their ballot, an effort to squad up to usage ranked prime voting to person a campaigner propulsion distant from Cuomo aft respective rounds of accumulated enactment from non-Cuomo voters.

Lander, who was arrested earlier this month serving arsenic an advocator for defendants successful national migration court, is the lone different campaigner sniffing double-digits. His determination to cross-endorse Mamdani, and to basal by him erstwhile different salient New York Jews lambasted Mamdani's unwillingness to denounce the slogan "globalize the intifada," could beryllium integral if Lander's supporters interruption mostly for Mamdani and assistance him clinch the nomination.

"Together, we are sending Andrew Cuomo backmost to the suburbs! With our help, Zohran Mamdani volition beryllium the Democratic nominee for the politician of the metropolis of New York and we are connected a way to triumph a metropolis that each New Yorkers tin spend and wherever everyone belongs," Lander said Tuesday nighttime astatine his campaign's predetermination nighttime event.

Mamdani besides received salient endorsements from Reps Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York Working Families Party, and Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, who, similar Mamdani, identifies arsenic a antiauthoritarian socialist. Other salient New Yorkers, similar authorities Attorney General Letitia James, person asked supporters to see Mamdani connected their ranked prime ballots (and for them to permission Cuomo off) adjacent portion saying they'd similar different candidate.

Cuomo was agelong seen arsenic the frontrunner successful the race, with his unsocial illustration arsenic a erstwhile statewide authoritative and nationalist Democratic Party heavyweight lending him wide sanction recognition from the commencement of his campaign, which nary of his rivals could lucifer astatine the beginning. He leaned heavy connected that acquisition to reason helium is the lone campaigner who'd beryllium capable to adequately combat backmost against President Donald Trump.

He marshalled dense governmental enactment from salient Democrats similar erstwhile Mayor Michael Bloomberg, erstwhile Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr., authorities and aggregate members of Congress. And helium received a large boost from a deep-pocketed ace PAC (which received $8.5 cardinal from Bloomberg) that blanketed the airwaves with ads singing his strengths and criticizing Mamdani.

But the comeback bid, which Cuomo himself threw immoderate acold h2o connected Tuesday nighttime aft seeing the archetypal results, comes 4 years aft helium resigned nether unit aft investigations by the authorities lawyer wide recovered that his administration undercounted Covid deaths successful nursing homes and that he sexually harassed aggregate women. (Cuomo admitted astatine the clip that helium "made mistakes" but has besides said he was a unfortunate of "cancel culture").

His existent supporters include many who antecedently called connected him to resign from his station arsenic governor, arsenic they reason Cuomo's acquisition is what the metropolis needs close now. And helium received a large boost from a well-funded ace PAC (which received $8.5 cardinal from Bloomberg) that blanketed the airwaves with ads praising his strengths and criticizing Mamdani.

The 2 apical candidates, and their allies, person been unsparing successful their disapproval of each other. The pro-Cuomo ace PAC has tally a deluge of ads framing Mamdani arsenic "a hazard we can't afford," criticizing him arsenic excessively extremist for the city.

"Experience matters, and I deliberation inexperience is unsafe successful this case. Mr. Mamdani has had a unit of 5 people, you're present going to tally a unit of 300,000 employees?" Cuomo said during a statement hosted by Spectrum News NY1 earlier this month.

He added: "He's ne'er dealt with the City Council. He's ne'er dealt with the Congress. He's ne'er dealt with the authorities Legislature. He's ne'er negotiated with a union. He's ne'er built anything. He's ne'er dealt with a earthy emergency. He's ne'er dealt with a hurricane, with a flood, et cetera. He's ne'er done immoderate of the essentials. And present you person Donald Trump connected apical of each of that."

But portion Cuomo has leaned connected that acquisition arsenic a strength, his opponents person tried to crook the tables by reminding voters of the crushed he's successful the contention successful the archetypal spot — his autumn from grace 4 years agone aft intersexual harassment allegations.

"To Mr. Cuomo: I person ne'er had to resign successful disgrace, I person ne'er chopped Medicaid," Mamdani replied to Cuomo astatine the Spectrum News/NY1 debate.

"I person ne'er hounded the 13 women who credibly impeach maine of intersexual harassment, I person ne'er sued for their gynecological records, and I person ne'er done those things due to the fact that I americium not you, Mr. Cuomo," helium added, ending by forcefully correcting Cuomo for saying his past sanction incorrectly.

The 2 person besides sparred implicit Israel and its warfare with Hamas successful Gaza. Cuomo attacked aft Mamdani appeared to defend the slogan "globalize the intifada" during a podcast interrogation released a week earlier the election, and Cuomo and his allies boosted disapproval from those similar the caput of the Anti-Defamation League and the U.S. Holocaust Museum. Mamdani responded during an affectional speech with reporters successful which helium said helium believes "there is nary country for antisemitism successful this city" and shared that he's received threats connected his beingness based connected his religion.