Sanders: Mamdani's win among the 'great political upsets in modern American history'

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) lauded New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani (D) for upsetting the Democratic establishment with a win in the Big Apple. 

“Starting at 1% in the polls, @ZohranKMamdani pulled off one of the great political upsets in modern American history,” Sanders wrote in a post on the social platform X, with a photo of him and Mamdani.

“Yes. We CAN create a government that represents working people and not the 1%. I look forward to working with Zohran as he builds a city that works for all,” he continued. 

Mamdani's win makes him the youngest mayor in the city's history and the second democratic socialist to lead the municipality with the largest population in the country. He managed to overtake New York's former Gov. Andrew Cuomo early in the polls with his plans to introduce city-run grocery stores, free child care, and other cost-saving measures for families.

The New York mayor-elect said his campaign was driven by connecting with voters face-to-face in the streets of all five boroughs. 

“When we launched this campaign, we said we wanted to knock on one million doors across the five boroughs by the June primary. Some people laughed,” Mamdani wrote in a statement on X, hours before polls closed.

“You got to work. We hit 1.6 million. In the general, we said let's do it again. Another million. We just passed three,” he added.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton commended his efforts.

"More people voted in New York City’s election this year than they have in 50 years. That’s a win for democracy, and a testament to @ZohranKMamdani's inspiring campaign," Clinton wrote in a statement on X.

"Congratulations to the next mayor of the greatest city in the world."