Mamdani-backed candidates sweep New York House primaries

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s first major test as a power broker ended in a sweep Tuesday night, as three congressional candidates he endorsed defeated better-known rivals and delivered a major victory for the city’s democratic socialist movement.

Brad Lander, Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier all won closely watched Democratic primaries in New York City, according to projections from multiple outlets. The results marked a blow to establishment Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who had backed candidates opposing Mamdani’s slate in key races.

The biggest upset came in New York’s 13th Congressional District, where Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old community organizer and democratic socialist, defeated five-term Rep. Adriano Espaillat. The district includes Upper Manhattan and part of the Bronx, including Washington Heights and Harlem. Espaillat, 71, was the first Dominican American elected to Congress and chairs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. He had support from Jeffries and other prominent Democrats.

Avila Chevalier had accused Espaillat of neglecting working-class constituents and being out of step with Democratic voters on Israel, NBC News reported. Espaillat and his allies criticized past social media posts by Avila Chevalier, including one in which she profanely criticized Democratic leaders.

In New York’s 10th District, Lander, the former New York City comptroller, defeated two-term Rep. Dan Goldman. NBC News reported that Lander captured about two-thirds of the vote. Goldman had been endorsed by Jeffries and Gov. Kathy Hochul, while Lander had backing from Mamdani and Sen. Bernie Sanders. In his victory speech, Lander praised Mamdani, saying, “It was an honor one year ago to work together to elect him the mayor of New York City,” and adding, “What a glorious time to be a New Yorker.”

The race was shaped in part by debate over Israel and the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC. “I think AIPAC is playing a corrosive role in our politics right now, flooding dark money into races in order to try to sustain unconditional support for Netanyahu’s wars,” Lander told CBS News. Goldman warned that attacks tied to Israel could fuel antisemitism. “Just because you oppose the [Israeli] government does not mean that you should oppose the country, and that gets conflated,” he said. “And then it gets applied and taken out on American Jews.”

Valdez, a 36-year-old state lawmaker and former union organizer, won the Democratic primary in the open 7th District, which covers parts of Brooklyn and Queens. She defeated Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who was endorsed by retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez and Jeffries. Valdez campaigned on “Medicare for All” and a “public option for housing,” NBC News reported, and argued she was the stronger critic of Israel’s conduct in its war against Hamas.

All three Mamdani-backed candidates criticized Israel’s conduct in Gaza as “genocide,” according to NBC News. Their districts heavily favor Democrats, making them likely winners in November.

Mamdani had framed the contests as a test of leadership in the city. “It’s not just a question of electing more Democrats, it’s a question of electing better Democrats,” he told CBS News.

Other New York primaries produced fewer shocks. Micah Lasher won the crowded Democratic primary in the 12th District to succeed retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler, defeating a field that included Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of John F. Kennedy, and others. Lasher was endorsed by Nadler, Hochul and former Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Cait Conley, a former White House counterterrorism official and Army combat veteran, won the Democratic primary to challenge Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in the 17th District.

Republicans seized on the Mamdani slate’s victories. “Tonight wasn’t just a bad night for so-called ‘Leader’ Hakeem Jeffries,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Mike Marinella said. “It was the night the Democrat establishment officially surrendered to Zohran Mamdani and the socialist wing of their party.”