In 2006, shortly after Tim Kaine won the Virginia gubernatorial election, I attended a meeting at Democratic Party headquarters. One party official opined, “One lesson we should learn from Kaine’s victory is that we need to talk more about our religion. Kaine did and he won. We should do it too.”
After seeing that same official on TV and at public events awkwardly and uncomfortably talking about religion, I decided to speak with him.
“I didn’t initially challenge your observation about Kaine’s victory, but I believe he won not because he talked about religion, but because he was authentic. Religion is an important part of his identity, so he had to talk about it – and did so comfortably. It’s clear that religion isn’t an important part of your life and when you force it, you sound inauthentic. Please just talk about who you are.”
I was reminded of this story after watching Zohran Mamdani’s victory in New York City’s Democratic primary election as pundits and consultants espoused self-serving explanations for his win.
One, who’s been pushing the party to support young candidates to challenge its ‘old guard’, said, “Mamdani won because he’s young. We need more young candidates to defeat old-timers.”
A consultant who designs messaging for poll-driven candidates noted Mamdani’s victory is “a great example of how far you can go if you genuinely centre your campaign in an engaging way around the issue that voters overwhelmingly say, in surveys, they care the most about.”
Still others pointed to his main opponent’s record of sexual harassment and corruption, Mamdani’s direct engagement with voters instead of relying on TV ads, or his avowedly progressive socialist agenda.
While all of the above may, to varying degrees, be true, even taken together they’re insufficient to account for Mamdani’s striking victory.
Mamdani won because he was authentic and unflappable, comfortable in his own skin, unapologetic about his deeply held beliefs, and able to be direct and honest with media and voters.
Watching him field questions about his statements on Israel and Palestinian rights was refreshing. Other candidates in that position might hesitate, trying to recall how ‘advisers’ told them to handle tough questions, and respond with incoherent word salad reeking of inauthenticity and satisfying no one.
Not Mamdani. When questioned about Israel or Palestinian rights, he answers directly without hesitation, neutralising the issue not with confusion, but with clarity and honesty. In his victory speech, he said:
“I promise you will not always agree with me, but I will never hide from you. If you are hurting, I will try to heal. If you feel misunderstood, I will strive to understand. Your concerns will always be mine.”
“There are millions of New Yorkers who have strong feelings about what happens overseas. Yes, I am one of them, and while I will not abandon my beliefs or my commitments grounded in the demand for equality, for humanity, you have my word to reach further, to understand the perspectives of those with whom I disagree and wrestle deeply with those disagreements.”
It’s this authenticity that voters find most compelling, including his substantial number of Jewish supporters.
During the primary, $30 million were spent against Mamdani in negative ads. The general election will likely be worse, as establishment Democrats and Republicans wage a campaign to smear, tarnish and make this young South Asian Muslim into a threat. On social media Republicans and some in the pro-Israel community are already attempting to shape a negative narrative and weaken his candidacy.
One compared his win to 9/11 – “After 9/11 we said ‘Never Forget’. I think we sadly have forgotten.” Another depicted Mamdani’s victory with that Statue of Liberty shrouded in something like a burka. A rightwing Jewish group tweeted that it’s time for Jews to pack up and leave New York City.
The Democrats’ consultant class will cower in the face of this onslaught and try to convince Mamdani to tamp down his progressive agenda and back off his support for Palestinians. What they don’t understand is that if he were to succumb to this pressure, he would lose the very quality that energised young and progressive voters and decisively won this election – his authenticity.
Mamdani has no need for their ‘expertise’ and I suspect that, despite his youth, he’s well aware that being true to himself and honest with the voters will continue to be his path to victory.
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