This article, produced in partnership with THE CITY, a nonprofit New York City newsroom, follows Zohran Mamdani's mayoral campaign volunteers as they canvass the Upper East Side, highlighting his progressive platform and surprising poll performance
Rainy Wednesday night in NYC? Perfect for Zohran Mamdani's mayoral campaign volunteers. While most New Yorkers stayed inside, Mohit Sani and Dylan Halper hit the Upper East Side, knocking on doors and securing votes with Mamdani's progressive platform of rent control, free buses, and universal childcare. Their success highlights the grassroots effort fueling Mamdani's surprising surge in the NYC mayoral race
On a rainy Upper East Side evening, Dylan Halper, a young Zohran Mamdani mayoral campaign volunteer, knocks on a door. A woman, Maria, emerges, her yapping dog in tow, setting the stage for a pivotal conversation about rent control and the upcoming NYC mayoral election
Zohran Mamdani's mayoral campaign volunteers, Dylan Halper and Mohit Sani, hit the Upper East Side. Eighteen-year-old Halper, a seasoned canvasser, introduces himself and fellow volunteer Sani to a potential voter, highlighting Mamdani's key policy: a rent freeze for rent-stabilized tenants – a winning pitch that secures an immediate vote. This interaction exemplifies the grassroots efforts fueling Mamdani's surprisingly strong mayoral bid
Eighteen-year-old canvassing veteran Dylan Halper mentors first-timer Mohit Sani during a Zohran Mamdani mayoral campaign door-knock on New York City's Upper East Side, showcasing the campaign's dedicated volunteer base
Unfamiliar with Zohran Mamdani? A New York City mayoral candidate, this Democrat's progressive platform—including rent freezes for rent-stabilized tenants, free buses, and universal childcare—is resonating with voters. One Upper East Side resident, after hearing about his policies, instantly pledged her support. Learn more about Mamdani's campaign and his surprising poll numbers
NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's campaign gains momentum with a rent freeze pledge resonating with voters. A volunteer's conversation highlights the effectiveness of Mamdani's message focusing on affordability for rent-stabilized tenants in New York City
Rent freeze advocate Zohran Mamdani secures a voter's support after a canvasser explains his platform, highlighting its appeal to rent-stabilized tenants
Upper East Side voter Maria secures Zohran Mamdani's mayoral campaign a crucial vote after hearing about his plan to freeze rent for rent-stabilized tenants. This encounter highlights the success of Mamdani's grassroots efforts, engaging volunteers and connecting with New York City voters directly
Thousands of volunteers, including Dylan Halper and Mohit Sani, are working to elect 33-year-old Zohran Mamdani as New York City's next mayor. Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist and State Assembly member, is campaigning on a platform of affordability, including rent control, free public transit, and universal childcare
Zohran Mamdani, a Queens Assembly member and DSA member, is vying for NYC mayor on a bold progressive platform focused on affordability. His plan includes free public transit, city-run grocery stores, universal childcare, and a rent freeze, resonating with voters concerned about the rising cost of living
Zohran Mamdani: NYC Mayoral Candidate Gaining Momentum
Progressive mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani is exceeding expectations, surging to second place in the polls. His compelling platform, amplified by engaging social media, resonates with online voters and has attracted over 27,000 individual donors – 12,000 more than any other candidate. Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist and New York State Assembly member, champions affordable housing (rent freeze), free public transit, universal childcare, and city-run grocery stores. Supporters compare him to a young Bernie Sanders or a socialist Barack Obama
Zohran Mamdani: NYC Mayoral Candidate Facing Criticism Amidst Progressive Platform. Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist and current state Assembly member, is challenging for the NYC mayoralty. His progressive agenda, including rent freezes and free public transit, resonates with many, attracting significant online support and exceeding fundraising goals. However, critics cite his inexperience, labeling him a "nepo baby" and raising concerns about his stance on the Gaza conflict, potentially alienating pro-Israel voters in a city where such views are not mainstream. His candidacy would make history as New York City's first Muslim mayor
Despite trailing former Governor Andrew Cuomo in early polls, New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani is gaining ground. Recent Emerson polling shows him narrowing the gap to single digits in ranked-choice voting simulations. While Cuomo holds a fundraising advantage, fueled by substantial super PAC support, Mamdani's grassroots campaign, powered by over 27,000 individual donors, is proving remarkably competitive
Zohran Mamdani's mayoral campaign differentiates itself through a robust, highly effective ground game, connecting directly with New York City voters
According to the campaign, nearly 30,000 people have signed up to canvass, and they’ve knocked on more than 750,000 doors. Mamdani has called it “the largest volunteer operation in NYC history.” It’s certainly the largest one happening this election cycle.
Mamdani’s canvassers are in every borough, every night of the week.
It can be a thankless task. In the city, volunteers must work their way into apartment buildings, past doormen and buzzer systems — often only to find themselves on the ground floor of one of New York’s infamous walk-ups. And more often than not, no one is home.
But that does not discourage Halper and Sani.
Halper, a member of the DSA like Mamdani, is inspired by the candidate’s vision for New York City. But like many other volunteers, he’s not immune to the pull of something much more tangible — merch.
All Mamdani volunteers receive a “ZetroCard” — it looks like a MetroCard, but with spaces on the back to mark how many times they’ve canvassed. Halper has heard that if he fills out the card fast enough, he’ll get a poster — a coveted keepsake that he can’t get anywhere else.
In fact, none of the campaign’s swag is available for purchase — a result of New York City’s campaign finance laws, according to Mamdani spokesperson Andrew Epstein. It’s turned Zohran-branded items into cult collectibles — like vibrant yellow bandanas decorated with classic NYC iconography such as pigeons and hot dogs — worn by volunteers or tied onto their tote bags.
And the only way to get one is to show up — something the campaign makes very easy to do.
“I’ve thought about volunteering for other things, and no one replies to your emails, or you have to apply and go do this thing, and then they only have one shift a week — and it’s when you work,” said Anna Henderson, 25.
But the Mamdani signups are simple and numerous: “When I decided to do it, I just clicked on a day I could go in my neighborhood and just went,” Henderson said. Now, she’s a seasoned Lower East Side canvasser.
The low barrier to entry — and the opportunity to canvass in your own neighborhood — has benefits and drawbacks. On one hand, volunteers can pull in their own neighborhood-specific information, like a local bus that was free due to Mamdani’s legislation.
On the other, it leaves some neighborhoods like Williamsburg and Astoria canvass-dense, while the entire South Bronx has no canvasses at all.
One field lead in The Bronx, Maxwell Dickinson, ventured out on a Saturday afternoon with a diverse group of volunteers, including multiple people over 40, a vital demographic Mamdani needs but has not yet cornered.
Originally from Miami, Dickinson now lives in Riverdale. He likes to open his canvassing conversations with Mamdani’s free bus platform and mentions universal child care if he sees a kid in the apartment.
“Personally, I’ve never mentioned that he’s in the DSA, especially being from Miami,” Dickinson said, referring to that city’s socialism-skeptical Cuban population. “But maybe that’s me being paranoid.”
The Bronx canvassers know that their borough is being underserved. Over coffee and pancakes at a diner, they chat after the canvass about ways to expand their operation. One volunteer said she thinks Parkchester would be receptive to Mamdani because of its large Bengali population. Another suggested that the campaign partner with local organizations to help get the word out.
“You need people who are from there,” Dickinson agreed.
Mamdani is following in the footsteps — literally — of another NYC Democratic Socialist: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In 2018, Ocasio-Cortez touted her ground game as essential to her defeat of incumbent Rep. Joseph Crowley. Her worn-down shoes, once displayed in a Cornell museum, became a symbol of how speaking to people face-to-face could make the difference for underdog candidates. (Ocasio-Cortez has not yet made an endorsement in the mayoral race.)
But Ocasio-Cortez had to mobilize voters in her district in The Bronx and Queens only; Mamdani needs to reach people across the five boroughs. The turnout for the congressional primary was also incredibly low — at only 11.8% of registered Democratic voters — so the supporters Ocasio-Cortez reached through her door-knocking had an outsized effect.
Because Mamdani’s canvasses are mostly available in neighborhoods where many volunteers live, it’s easy to see where his voter base lies: Bushwick and Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, the East Village in Manhattan and Astoria in Queens offer the most frequent canvass opportunities at five days a week.
But the younger, often transplant-heavy population of those neighborhoods may not actually turn out for the election. In 2021, the west side of Manhattan — from Greenwich Village up to Columbia University — had some of the highest voter turnout at between 30% to 40%, whereas Bushwick in Brooklyn saw around 14%. Plus, younger voters are notorious for staying home: Only 18% of registered Dems between 18 and 29 voted in the 2021 mayoral primary, compared to over double that percentage for 70- to 79-year-olds. The median age of a New York primary voter is 54.
Some Mamdani organizers are trying to change that.
At first, Myesha Choudhury canvassed for Mamdani everywhere from Hillside, Queens, to Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, to Staten Island. She was especially inspired by her conversations with small business owners in Jackson Heights.
“I was literally speaking about New York City politics in Bangla, in my native language, to New Yorkers who had been here for decades and decades,” she said.
But unlike those she spoke to, Choudhury wanted to reach people who haven’t lived in the city long enough to get a feel for local politics — and may not plan to stay long enough to care.
“I feel like it’s so important for young adults who have been living the dream in New York to uplift New York as well,” explained Choudhury.
To get young New Yorkers off of their phones and into their communities, she was part of creating Hot Girls 4 Zohran. The organization, which is not affiliated with the campaign, hosts picnics, postering sessions, raves, fundraisers and, of course, canvasses.
Bright and early on a Sunday morning, 15 of the Hot Girls chatted and cheered as they made their way down Central Park West, papering lampposts with pink posters that paired a Mamdani plank with an instruction not to rank Cuomo — a position the official canvassers take, as well.
“Cuomo’s literally hiding from New Yorkers because he knows if he’s confronted about his platform, he’s screwed,” one said, taping a poster. Cuomo has appeared at very few candidate forums, and is not taking an on-the-street campaign approach. “I saw something like ‘New York deserves a hot mayor,’ and that’s true. Hot girls deserve a hot mayor.”
Compared to Mamdani and most of the field, Cuomo has avoided many public appearances, and for some, the sexual harassment allegations that drove him out of office — which Cuomo continues to deny — may be disqualifying.
But his campaign has amassed a formidable slate of boosters. Cuomo has picked up major endorsements from large unions — even those who called for his resignation in 2021 — whose money, influence and members go a long way in city elections. He’s also focused on courting Black clergy members in a bid to win over a demographic that helped propel Mayor Eric Adams to victory last cycle.
“The benefits of what he’s doing is to maintain a frontrunner status — to not let opponents attack you personally,” explained political consultant Hank Sheinkopf. “They’re empty voices talking into a vacuum, and he’s not responding to them, which makes them less consequential.”
Of course, the canvassers want Mamdani to win. And increasingly, at least to the volunteers, his campaign seems like less of a long shot.
“I am not under any illusions that he has it in the bag,” said Henderson from the Lower East Side. “But I don’t think it’s impossible. It doesn’t feel like a lost cause,” she said. “I guess I’m canvass-pilled.”
After his first time canvassing, the experience on the Upper East Side has left Sani more energized than when he began.
“I look at my past self, and I see someone who watched John Oliver, watched ‘The Daily Show,’ watched Hasan Minhaj, and I felt politically active — but when I look back, I did nothing,” Sani mused. “I was angry all day, but nothing happened from that anger.”
“Now, I do not watch John Oliver, I do not watch ‘The Daily Show,’ I do not watch Hasan Minhaj. And I’m a thousand times more politically active,” he continued. “And then I can go to bed at night, and I’m not stressed existentially about it.”
But inspiring 29,000 canvassers may not be enough. With early voting starting on June 14 and primary day just three weeks away, the volunteer army still has a lot of work to do to inspire voters — and it’s running out of time.
Inside the cramped vestibule of an Upper East Side apartment, Sani hits the buzzer. He’s pushed a few so far, with no answer. But this time, a garbled voice comes from the other side, asking: Who’s there?
“I’m here to talk about Zohran,” Sani says, rushing through the words.
But the voice on the other end is confused: “What?”
“I’m here to talk to tenants about Zohran Mamdani?” Sani tries again. No acknowledgement.
One last try: “I’m here to talk about the election?”
“Oh,” says the voice on the other end, sounding disappointed. “You woke me up. I was sleeping.”
“I’m sorry for waking you up,” Sani says. He’s genuinely contrite and, turning to Halper, asks, “Did I do something wrong?”
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