On the heels of a highly anticipated mayoral primary election in New York City, in which former Governor Andrew Cuomo conceded the Democratic nomination to State Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani, political commentators on all sides are dissecting the outcome.
Mamdani, who identifies as a democratic socialist, won the most votes in the first round of the Democratic primary, per the Associated Press.
Mamdani is now officially the nominee for the Democratic party leading up to the city’s general election in November of this year.
From polarizing remarks from President Donald Trump to supportive celebrations from Bernie Sanders, reactions to Mamdani’s potential leadership run the gamut.
But Amanda Litman, co-founder and president of Run For Something, has pointed out something that goes beyond this one election.
“Since Zohran Mamdani won on Tuesday, more than 1,100 people have reached out to Run For Something to express interest in running for office,” she posted on LinkedIn in the days following the primary.
Run For Something is a political organization founded on Trump’s first Inauguration Day in 2017 that “recruits and supports young, diverse progressives to run for down-ballot races.”
Since its founding, the organization has recruited nearly 100,000 people to run for local office in all 50 states, according to its website.
“Our candidates come from all walks of life — teachers, doctors, activists, environmentalists, stay-at-home dads, librarians, college students — and they represent communities that have been historically excluded or discouraged from running for office,” the organization adds.
Run For Something provides tools to people looking to run for office, including mentors, volunteers, funding, training, and a community of candidates who share similar experiences and support.
According to the organization’s website, once someone expresses interest in running for office, they will be invited to join a conference call with members of the team and other prospective candidates.
From the looks of it, the group has a busy schedule ahead.
“Generational change is coming,” Litman continued. “New leaders ready to fight like hell to make life meaningfully better for *everyone* are raising their hands to run for office.”
In a comment on LinkedIn, someone responded saying that the 1,100 number was “incredible,” to which Litman replied: “500 more since I posted this!”
The next day, she took to Instagram to announce that over 2,200 people have now expressed interest in running for office.
“Since Tuesday — it is now Friday morning — more than 2,200 people have raised their hands and told Run For Something they want to run for office,” she said in a video. “That number doubled in a day. New leaders are here. They’re ready.”
And a week following the primary election, Run For Something shared that it had seen a total of 5,000 new prospective candidates, what Litman called "our biggest candidate recruitment surge ever."
Why is this good news?
While Run For Something does specifically promote progressive values, reduced civic engagement and participation is an issue that impacts nearly all Americans.
Public trust in government has been on the decline since the early 2000s, according to Pew Research Center, and young people are especially uncertain about their elected officials.
A 2023 report from the Institute of Citizens & Scholars found that 57% of young adults were dissatisfied with the American political system, and 52% had no or little trust in government institutions.
The survey also found that the two primary political parties seem to be failing to attract young Americans. Of those surveyed, 61% did not identify with either major party; 29% identified as independent, nonpartisan, or other party; and 33% were unsure or did not identify politically in any way. Only 22% identified as Democrat and 17% as Republican.
Although there is no available data on who has expressed interest in running for office through Run For Something this week, the organization says that it specifically works with Gen-Z and millennial candidates, potentially pointing to a renewed sense of hope and faith in the electoral process among young Americans.
The N.Y.C. primary did still see relatively low turnout rates, with Gothamist reporting that less than 30% of eligible voters cast their ballots in the Democratic primary.
On the other hand, CBS News shared that more than 384,000 ballots were cast during early voting — more than double the total from the last mayoral election cycle four years ago.
“I think there is also just so much energy coming out of wanting to rebel against the Trump administration and wanting to be more politically active,” one voter, David Demoya, told CBS News at the polls.
As for Mamdani, the mayoral hopeful communicates that he is prepared to work with this influx of engagement.
“We’ve shown that by focusing on the issues of working and middle class New Yorkers across this city, that by listening instead of lecturing, that by creating a politics of no translation, New Yorkers will join you in your fight for a new city,” Mamdani said on primary election day during a speech in Queens.
“We are well positioned to finally turn the page on the politics of the past.”
Header image courtesy of Zohran for New York City
