With the New York City mayoral election approaching, the Xavier Review aims to inform the community by providing an overview of the major candidates and their platforms. This article seeks to give students the opportunity to understand what each candidate stands for and make an informed decision for themselves. Each candidate and their key policy positions will be examined in order of their current citywide polling. Additionally, a small poll conducted among Xavier students will be discussed.
The current frontrunner is the energetic and outspoken Zohran Mamdani. What do he and the other candidates have to offer? Let’s find out.
Zohran Mamdani (D)
Zohran Mamdani is the Democratic nominee for the 2025 New York City mayoral election. Mamdani is currently a state assemblyman and previously had a brief stint as a rapper under the names “Young Cardamom” and “Mr. Cardamom.” Mamdani is running on a Democratic-Socialist platform centered around the issues of affordability and opposition to Israel and its military operations in the Gaza Strip. Mamdani’s policies include freezing rent in rent-stabilized buildings, building more affordable housing, establishing a Department of Community Safety to replace the NYPD on many 911 calls, establishing city-run grocery stores, making the MTA city buses free, and raising the minimum wage to $30 an hour by 2030. He calls for suspending gifted and talented programs in public schools which has drawn some pushback from educators and parents. Perhaps most controversially, however, Mamdani has laid out plans to raise the top city income tax rate from 4% to 6%, a 50% increase. Critics argue that this will drive out wealthy residents and reduce revenue from New York City, but supporters of this policy believe that it will supply the city with the revenue necessary to make the major changes and funding increases that Mamdani is calling for. Many of Mamdani’s major plans for changes require approval from the Governor, but Mamdani has shown that if elected, he is seeking sweeping reforms that will be implemented quickly.
Andrew Cuomo (I)
Andrew Cuomo is running for mayor as an Independent. Cuomo was the governor of New York State from 2011 to 2021 until he resigned amid accusations of sexual harassment. As governor, Cuomo passed a 15$ minimum wage, strengthened gun control, subsidized college tuition, and oversaw massive upgrades to both John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia Airports. As mayor, Cuomo’s community safety policies will include increasing the size and scope of the NYPD and improving quality of life through the criminalization of drug use and loitering. Cuomo has plans to make major education reforms. He wants to make universal 3-K and strengthen programs for career-specific training. He wants to expand homeless outreach, increase funding for shelters and expand access to mental health and addiction services. He has pledged to curb the rising antisemitism in New York City, and unlike Zohran Mamdani, Cuomo is a strong supporter of Israel. He markets himself as someone to maintain the current power structure, oppose Mamdani’s calls for major changes, and benefit New York with his previous leadership experience. He is viewed as the legacy candidate with extensive government experience to oppose Mamdani’s major changes in policy and rhetoric.
Curtis Sliwa (R)
Curtis Sliwa is the Republican candidate for the mayoral election. Sliwa is a host on WABC radio and leads the Guardian Angels, a volunteer crime-prevention patrol group in New York City. Before Sliwa founded the Guardian Angels, he formed the “Magnificent 13,” which focused on patrolling the trains overnight at a time when the subway was unsafe. The group also patrolled “the Ramble” in Central Park, where gay men faced frequent harassment in the 1970s. Sliwa wants to reform Rikers Island and improve safety for inmates and officers. Sliwa also pledged to hire 7,000 new NYPD officers, reinstate the homeless outreach unit, and combat fare evasion on public transit. His policies regarding education include raising academic standards, expanding gifted programs, and expanding vocational and career education within the school system. Sliwa is marketing himself as a person who has worked closely with ordinary New Yorkers for decades. He markets himself as a tough-on-crime guy who will clean up the streets in order to make New York safer for working class New Yorkers. He hopes to use this branding to propel himself in front of Mamdani and Cuomo, though at the current moment Sliwa is polling significantly lower than his opponents.
Poll Results
The Xavier Review decided to poll a handful of Xavier students on their attitude towards the mayoral election. 41% of respondents expressed support for Zohran Mamdani, 31% of respondents expressed support for Curtis Sliwa, 21% of respondents expressed support for Andrew Cuomo and 7% of respondents said that they were undecided. This poll, though possessing sizable margin for error, shows us that Mamdani’s presence on social media, which is far greater than that of Cuomo and Sliwa, could have influenced Xavier students to support him. This will be a big factor leading into the election in November, as Mamdani’s social media presence has the potential to sway many young voters in his favor. Sliwa having more support than Cuomo can be explained by the fact that a disproportionate amount of Xavier students live in areas where Curtis Sliwa is very popular like Rockaway Beach and Staten Island. Ultimately, this poll shows us the enthusiasm from Xavier students towards Zohran Mamdani and that he, as of now, is the clear frontrunner to Gracie’s mansion.
