Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary is being hailed by some as a triumph for progressive politics. But for Jewish New Yorkers—and for all Americans concerned with antisemitism—it is a flashing red warning light.
Putting aside his economic fantasies of “free everything” funded by the ever-shrinking pool of the “rich,” Mamdani’s positions on Israel and antisemitism are not just troubling—they’re disqualifying. He has called Israel an apartheid and genocidal state. He has refused to condemn slogans like “globalize the intifada,” a phrase that openly glorifies violent uprising. He has pledged to support the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement—a campaign that targets Israel’s legitimacy and often bleeds into open antisemitism.
And yet, many Jewish voters supported him. Not despite his views—but while ignoring them.
Even after Hamas’s brutal massacre on October 7, 2023, Mamdani refused to clearly condemn the terrorists. Instead, he blamed Israel—its government, its Prime Minister, and its very political structure—for the violence. He promised, should he become mayor, to arrest the Israeli Prime Minister if he visits New York under an ICC warrant, despite the U.S. not recognizing the court’s jurisdiction. The fact that this is being taken seriously speaks volumes.
To some Jewish New Yorkers, Mamdani offers a compelling domestic platform: eldercare, housing, and public safety reform (though his plan includes replacing police with “violence interrupters”—a euphemism for unarmed civilian mediators—on many incident calls, even hate crimes). But it raises urgent questions: Would an antisemitic attack under his administration be met with police response or a clipboard and a de-escalation circle? Would New York, home to the largest Jewish population outside Israel, remain a safe place for Jews under a mayor who won’t even say that Israel should exist as a Jewish state?
Mamdani’s defenders in the Jewish community, including activists at JFREJ and supporters of The Jewish Vote, insist that he takes hate crimes seriously. He’s even proposed an 800% increase in anti-hate funding and a new “department of community safety.” But actions speak louder than budgets. His record suggests an ideological hostility to Israel that blurs all too easily into hostility toward Jews.
This moment evokes the question asked by Norman Podhoretz in Why Are Jews Liberals? Decades ago, Podhoretz observed that for many secular Jews, liberalism had ceased to be a political ideology and had become a religious substitute—complete with its own commandments and creed. In that light, Mamdani’s support among Jews, even in neighborhoods like the Upper West Side and Williamsburg, becomes less surprising—but more tragic.
Podhoretz’s point remains painfully relevant: If being a “good Jew” today is defined not by Jewish tradition or communal safety but by allegiance to a progressive ideology that tolerates or excuses antisemitism, what future does the Jewish community have in American public life?
We are not talking about disagreements over tax policy or zoning. We are talking about a mayoral nominee who has aligned himself with movements that demonize Israel, excuse terrorism, and erode the legitimacy of Jewish self-determination. This is not nuance. This is not diplomacy. This is capitulation.
And yet, many Jews still cheer. As one friend cynically observed: “Oven-ready Jews”—so eager to be accepted by the progressive movement that they’ll ignore the knife already halfway in.
This is decision time.
If the Jewish community cannot draw a red line at a candidate who refuses to condemn Hamas, who celebrates slogans glorifying intifada, and who supports the marginalization of the world’s only Jewish state, then what line will we draw?
In every generation, we are told, someone rises up to destroy us. And in every generation, there are always some among us who, hoping to avoid confrontation, decide to go along with it—until it’s too late.
Let’s not be those Jews. Not this time.