Democrats downplay divisions after left wing delivers stunning victories in New York

Campaign Democrats downplay divisions after left wing delivers stunning victories in New York Comments: by Caroline Vakil - 06/24/26 5:34 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Caroline Vakil - 06/24/26 5:34 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Democrats on Wednesday largely downplayed any hard feelings a day after a stunning trio of victories by antiestablishment candidates in New York that sent two House incumbents packing.

The wins by the three candidates supported by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) had a heavy left-wing tilt. Two were democratic socialist candidates, while the third ousted Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) with a campaign message heavy on criticism of the incumbent’s position on Israel.

It was also a seriously bad outcome for the Democratic establishment, with candidates supported by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and other powerful figures all on the losing side. It came almost exactly a year after Mamdani’s win in the New York City primary race for mayor caught members of the Democratic establishment by surprise.

Centrist Democrats said they worried the New York results could hurt the party’s effort in the fall to win back the House majority by tying candidates across the country to democratic socialism.

Democrats from Jeffries to former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) largely sought to change the subject when they were asked about the results, saying they were focused on beating Republicans in the fall.

“The people have spoken. We’re focused on winning Republican seats to take us to the majority,” Pelosi told The Hill when asked about Mamdani’s endorsements ultimately knocking out Goldman and Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.).

“Mayor Mamdani is obviously a powerhouse figure in New York politics now, and his endorsement means a lot,” Raskin told The Hill when asked a similar question.

Raskin avoided a separate question on whether he believed Mamdani could be creating enemies on Capitol Hill by endorsing against incumbents. Espaillat, in particular, is the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and had endorsed Mamdani, though he had initially backed former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the mayoral race.

“We’re in the fight of our lives with MAGA authoritarianism, and the Democrats are going to rally behind whoever is winning all across the country,” Raskin said, adding “there’s no time for looking backwards at this point.”

Mamdani’s risky gamble backing Lander and democratic socialists Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier paid off big. Valdez defeated Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez’s (D-N.Y.) pick to replace her in Congress.

Jeffries backed Espaillat and Goldman, while the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC backed Espaillat. Even some of Mamdani’s allies in New York expressed frustration over the mayor’s endorsements.

“Some of the candidates that he has supported are individuals who do not understand the politics of New York City, the cultural differences from district to district, who have not been part of the history and the struggle of some of these districts, and are relatively new to the body politic,” New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), who served as a key progressive ally of Mamdani during his mayoral run, told CNN in a recent interview.

Some far-left lawmakers celebrated the wins.

“Alhamdulillah! I can’t imagine experiencing what she had to a still smiling as a first time candidate but respect her grace and resilience and I am very proud of her,” Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said on the social platform X of Avila Chevalier.

Top House Democratic leaders generally sought to tamp down any signs of friction.

“Listen, the mayor and I agree to strongly disagree about some of his endorsements, and he’s got work to do in terms of the conversations that he’s going to have with members of Congress moving forward,” Jeffries told reporters.

The wins by Mamdani’s allies on Tuesday underscored how the new mayor has become a real kingmaker in the party, but they also provided new talking points for Republicans to attack Democrats as being too far to the left.

President Trump lambasted the three winning candidates as “communists,” a line that is likely to be repeated in campaign advertisements. The clear GOP goal will be to tie vulnerable members of the House to Mamdani and the most far-left House members.

All that said, Democrats are feeling confident about their chances of winning the House, and they believe they won a new political gift from Trump on Wednesday when he said he would not sign a bipartisan housing bill that passed Congress with large majorities.

Trump said he would not sign the bill until Republicans passed legislation that requires proof of citizenship in registering to vote.

House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) told reporters at a leadership press conference that Mamdani’s moves weren’t impeding their goal of taking back the House majority, noting “these are members who are going to help us turn back these terrible policies, and … that’s what we look forward to.”

At the same time, Aguilar made it clear that House Democrats would be calling the shots on the congressional agenda.

“The mayor of New York doesn’t get a vote in the Democratic caucus, the members who are elected get those votes, and we look forward to working with the members that New York elects to serve in the Democratic caucus,” he said.

Some members, meanwhile, didn’t mince words over their disappointment with the recent primary results.

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) acknowledged that Mamdani had a “very successful evening” but noted the political terrain in New York City was different from the rest of the country.

“I don’t think that those same strategies and the same type [of] people will win around America. It’ll … cost us in the general election,” he said.

Members of the party were also sad to see Goldman and Espaillat leave their ranks next year.

“Disappointed to see some really good members lose, and I think that’s unfortunate for the Congress,” Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) told reporters. “But obviously all elections are local, so they had a lot going on there.”