Sanders: 'Of course' Mamdani is a Democratic Party leader

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Wednesday that New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is a new leader of the Democratic Party by virtue of winning his race on Tuesday.

In an interview on CNN’s “The Source,” anchor Kaitlan Collins asked the progressive senator whether he thinks Mamdani, whom Sanders endorsed, is a party leader “after seeing the results of last night’s elections.”

“Well, of course, he is,” Sanders replied. “He’s going to be the mayor of the city of New York.”

Sanders said Democrats across the country have a lot to learn from Mamdani, whose relentless focus on cost of living and affordability is largely credited with his victory Tuesday night.

“What's important about last night is not only that he ran a brilliant campaign … it’s what he talked about during the campaign. And he made it clear — what is true in every state in this country — is that the richest people in America are becoming phenomenally richer. Billionaires are exploding in terms of wealth, while, ordinary people, 60 percent of people live paycheck to paycheck,” Sanders said, adding those people can’t afford basic necessities like food, child care and health care.

“That's what Zohran campaigned on,” he added. “It resonated with people. It will resonate with people in every state in this country.”

Sanders said Democrats “absolutely” should run on similar messaging going forward.

Asked whether he thinks that message is resonating with Democrats on Capitol Hill, Sanders said, “To some degree it is.”

“But more importantly,” he continued, “it is resonating with ordinary Americans all across this country.”

Sanders campaigned for Mamdani ahead of the election, and Mamdani cleared 50 percent of the vote in New York City to emerge the victor in one of the most closely watched general election mayoral races the city has seen in decades.