June 22, 2026, 4:30 a.m. ET
A faux attack ad against Rep. Dan Goldman, D-New York, has been running every time I turn on my television. It’s a telling indicator of the state of New York City politics.
“If someone asks you who’s backing Dan, tell them it’s the radical progressives,” the voiceover says, following a string of endorsements from Planned Parenthood, the Sierra Club and the teachers’ union.
The ad is meant to highlight Goldman as far left in an appeal to the voters of Lower Manhattan and the western part of Brooklyn. Yet Goldman lacks the true mark of a progressive – an endorsement from Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
That’s because Mamdani, a democratic socialist who won much of the district in the 2025 mayoral election, has been backing Brad Lander from the time the former city comptroller announced his candidacy. Goldman, on the other hand, failed to endorse Mamdani in the primary and the general.
Voters like Lander, too: Polling from Emerson College shows that 57% of New York’s 10th Congressional District is supporting Lander over the incumbent. It’s no wonder Goldman, who has been criticized for his unwavering support of Israel by progressives, is trying so hard to make us believe he’s part of a radical movement.
As New York City progressives go, so go the Democrats. New York’s primary election on June 23 will decide whether Mamdani’s election was a fluke or a foghorn alerting the city to a deep blue wave – one that could in turn shape the nation. As a progressive, I hope it’s the latter.
What will the weight of a Mamdani endorsement be?
Lander isn’t the only congressional candidate endorsed by Mamdani, and the odds are tough for those running against the backed candidates.
In the 13th Congressional District, the mayor endorsed organizer Darializa Avila Chevalier to replace Rep. Adriano Espaillat. Still, polls are mixed on who will win this race, showing that a Mamdani endorsement may not be all it’s cracked up to be.
The same can be said of the 7th Congressional District, part of which was called “The Commie Corridor” by The New York Times in 2025. Mamdani has endorsed state Assemblymember Claire Valdez over Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. While Emerson College showed Valdez ahead of Reynoso, it was only by 2 percentage points.
It’s clear a Mamdani endorsement isn’t a surefire way to win an election in New York City. After all, the mayor’s approval rating is at 48% – way better than President Donald Trump’s, sure, but still not a majority of New York City residents.
Yet my hope is that Mamdani’s boost of these candidates is a way to get progressives in Congress who will shape Democratic strategy for the next two years and move the messaging beyond the generic “Donald Trump bad” platform we’ve come to expect from the party.
New Yorkers can show America progressives can really win
But Mamdani isn’t endorsing just anyone. When Chi Ossé was exploring a challenge to U.S. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, Mamdani put his foot down and effectively blocked the city councilmember from receiving the support of the city’s chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Jeffries, who endorsed Mamdani in the 11th hour before the mayoral race, is coasting to November without a challenger.
Mamdani has also declined to endorse one of the many candidates in the 12th Congressional District, an open primary to replace Rep. Jerry Nadler following his retirement from Congress. Candidates in this race include Assemblymembers Micah Lasher and Alex Bores, as well as Kennedy heir Jack Schlossberg.
Lasher, a more moderate Democrat endorsed by Nadler, is leading in the polls.
By being selective about his endorsements, Mamdani is controlling his own image and the image of progressives nationwide. He’s not pushing for a complete upheaval of the system, but challenging safe blue districts to imagine a world where progressives have a voice in Congress.
My hope is that New Yorkers, who live in a safe blue city with an openly progressive mayor, will turn out in the primary elections and show the country that progressive politics can and will change the country for the better. We did it with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, in 2018. Now she’s a leading figure in Democratic politics.
If we can produce AOC and Mamdani, we can surely produce the next class of progressives in Congress who will usher in a new era of Democratic politics, proving to the United States yet again that there is room for progressive policies in a big tent.
Follow USA TODAY columnist Sara Pequeño on Bluesky:@sarapequeno.bsky.social
