Andrew Cuomo has conceded in the New York City mayoral Democratic primary to a millennial socialist in a stunning upset.
Zohran Mamdani stunned the city’s political establishment by beating the former state governor to the party’s nomination.
Mr Cuomo, 67, had attempted to pull off a comeback after resigning from public office in 2021 after an inquiry found that he sexually harassed multiple women.
But Mr Mamdani, a state assembly member and relative outsider, gained momentum in recent weeks by running a sharp campaign focused on the city’s rising cost of living and the war on Gaza.
His platform includes free buses, universal childcare and city-run grocery stores — all paid for by wealth taxes.
The Ugandan-born politician is also an outspoken critic of Israel who supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) momvement, and said he would arrest prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visited New York.
Mr Mamdani secured endorsements from two of the United States’ foremost progressive congressmen, New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Vermont senator Bernie Sanders.
Results on Tuesday night showed Mr Mamdani, 33, with a commanding lead in the primary, but falling short of the 50 per cent threshold needed to win outright.
However, in a speech to supporters, Mr Cuomo said Mr Mamdani had "won" the primary race and that "we are going to take a look and make some decisions".
The board of elections will now tally Democratic voters’ second-preference candidates, with a final result expected by the end of the week.
In an interview with the New York Times, Mr Cuomo said he was examining whether he would run in the general election in November on an “independent line”.
If elected in November, Mr Mamdani would be the first Muslim and Indian American to lead America’s largest city.
Eric Adams, the incumbent mayor who won the 2021 election as a Democrat but is now running as an independent, is deeply unpopular after he was charged with taking bribes, which were later dropped by the US Justice Department.
The other contenders for mayor include Republican Curtis Sliwa, who lost to Mr Adams four years ago, and Jim Walden, an attorney who is running as an independent.
