By Joseph De Avila

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) has endorsed Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani's bid for mayor of New York City, throwing her progressive brand behind the democratic socialist's upstart campaign that has galvanized young and left-leaning voters.

New York City's crowded Democratic primary field has been led by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has been attempting to mount a political comeback after he resigned from office following a wave of sexual harassment claims, which he has denied. Mamdani, a progressive from Queens, has been Cuomo's strongest contender in the polls.

"Assemblymember Mamdani has demonstrated a real ability on the ground to put together a coalition of working-class New Yorkers that is strongest to lead the pack," Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview with the New York Times. "In the final stretch of the race, we need to get very real about that."

Ocasio-Cortez's campaign didn't respond to a request for comment.

Ocasio-Cortez pulled off an upset win in 2018 and transformed politics, Mamdani said Thursday. "With @AOC's support and this movement behind us, we will do the same," Mamdani said.

Ocasio-Cortez timed her endorsement announcement just a few weeks ahead of the June 24 Democratic primary. There are 11 candidates vying for the Democratic slot in the ranked-choice primary, including City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, City Comptroller Brad Lander and former City Comptroller Scott Stringer. All of Cuomo's rivals are urging supporters to not to rank the former governor in the primary to deny him the Democratic nomination.

In the 2021 Democratic primary, Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Maya Wiley, who went on to place third.

Mayor Eric Adams isn't running in the Democratic primary and will appear on the general election ballot on two party lines he created called "Safe&Affordable" and "EndAntiSemitism." Adams opted to skip the primary after he was hobbled by bribery charges that were later dropped by the Trump administration.

Mamdani, who was born Uganda and raised in New York City, has campaigned on lowering the cost of living in the city and improving public transit. He has also advocated for the Palestinian people and accused the Israeli government of committing genocide in Gaza.

Write to Joseph De Avila at joseph.deavila@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 05, 2025 11:21 ET (15:21 GMT)

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