Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral campaign hit its first rough seas in the public reaction to the Park Avenue shooting last week. Concerns were raised about how a candidate who wanted to disband the NYPD’s elite tactical units would lead the city in the wake of another incident like that. Then the New York Times article came out alleging that President Trump called Andrew Cuomo and Eric Adams looking into consolidating forces to beat Mamdani, and the political seas suddenly turned calm again for the socialist front-runner. J.C. Polanco is a political analyst and assistant professor at the University of Mount Saint Vincent. He appeared on 710 WOR’s Mendte in the Morning program to discuss what bearing a phone call from President Trump would have on the race.
“There are pockets in the city where Donald Trump is very popular,” Polanco told host Larry Mendte. “But for the majority of the city, if I were to take a poll, I think Covid-19 is more popular than President Trump, you know this. President Trump, he knows this and if he were to get involved in this race, it would be the kiss of death for whoever he endorses… [Plus] the Republicans need a Mayor Mamdani in the mid-term elections. If Mayor Mamdani wins, this would be a treasure trove of commercials for Republicans in purple districts to associate the Democrats with a socialis who has some Communist and Marxist positions.”
Polanco says any involvement on Trump’s part turns into a no-win situation for whomever he backs: “You’re in a rough spot if you’re President Trump because you need Mayor Mamdani as the pinata in order to keep your Republican majority, but you don’t want to see New York become a socialist city, so it’s very tough. Him getting involved here could be good news for Mamdani at the end of the day.”
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