Washington Examiner Senior Writer Joe Concha predicted that if New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani accomplishes his campaign promises, it would help the Republican Party.
“Talk about quality of life, where Mamdani just did an interview this week, said he would abolish the New York City gang database. What upside is there to that exactly? He’s never really asked to explain it,” Concha said on Fox Business’s Kudlow on Wednesday.
Mamdani, a 33-year-old New York assemblyman, previously called to “defund the police” and, in 2020, referred to the New York City Police Department as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety.”
After launching his mayoral campaign this year, Mamdani said during a debate that he would “not defund the police” but “work with the police.” Since then, he has begun a listening tour, during which he has met with dozens of NYPD officers.
“Mamdani, if he actually is able to pass all things that he wants to, that is a walking, talking ad for the GOP — both in New York state and across the country,” Concha said.
Among Mamdani’s campaign promises are to support the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement against Israel, freeze rent, and provide free child care. His platform helped him win the Democratic primary earlier this year.
President Donald Trump has publicly criticized Mamdani’s bid to run for office in his hometown.
“No, I don’t like to see a communist become mayor, I will tell you that,” Trump told reporters last week.
Trump acknowledged to reporters on Thursday that he “would like to see two people drop out and have it be one-on-one” because “that’s a race that could be won.”
Concha suggested that Mamdani appeals to voters who like “free stuff.”
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“I think the promise of free stuff sounds really great on paper, even if usually there is no way to pay for it,” Concha said. “More and more kids are staying home until they are 30 years old or older. So as all of this is happening, free stuff sounds pretty good.”
Mamdani will face incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa in November.