Bucking Democratic leaders, Mamdani endorsed Brad Lander, Claire Valdez, and Darializa Avila Chevalier in three competitive House primaries in New York City. All three candidates’ campaigns were characterized by progressive economic policies and criticisms of U.S. military and financial support for Israel, which they accused of committing “genocide” in Gaza. The three Democratic nominees are expected to win in the general election in the fall.
The three districts were among those where Mamdani performed best in the November mayoral election, when he defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who had the backing of top establishment Democrats.
Brad Lander, former New York City comptroller and Democratic Congressional candidate for New York, during a primary-night watch party in New York City on June 23, 2026. —Adam Gray—Bloomberg/Getty Images
“It was an honor one year ago to work together to elect him the mayor of New York City,” said Lander, who initially ran for mayor alongside Mamdani and cross-endorsed Mamdani’s campaign for the ranked-choice mayoral primary, in his victory speech. “What a glorious time to be a New Yorker.”
“Our party needs to admit that Joe Biden’s ‘hug Bibi’ strategy was a catastrophic mistake. I believe it made us complicit in genocide,” he said. Lander, who is Jewish, has long been involved in progressive activism with Jewish organizations and highlighted the differences in his views on Israel from Goldman, who is also Jewish. He previously criticized Goldman for accepting donations to his campaign from the largest pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC and for not supporting legislation to block further U.S. military aid to Israel. Goldman has been a vocal advocate against anti-Semitism, including from within his own party.
Claire Valdez
State legislator Claire Valdez won in an open race for New York’s 7th District against Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. Rep. Nydia Velázquez, who is retiring from the district, and the Working Families Party had endorsed Reynoso.
Democratic Congressional candidate for New York Claire Valdez takes the stage during her primary-night watch party in the East Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, on June 23, 2026.. —Michael M. Santiago—Getty Images“We haven’t just won an election, we have declared that this movement is durable,” Valdez said in her victory speech. “It will not stop until working people are no longer asked to just build the table, no longer just offered a seat at the table, but will run the table.”
Darializa Avila Chevalier, Democratic Congressional candidate for New York, during a "Get Out The Vote" rally ahead of a primary election in Brooklyn, New York, on June 18, 2026. —Adam Gray—Bloomberg/Getty Images
Avila Chevalier, a democratic socialist, had the backing of progressive groups including the NYC-DSA and Justice Democrats, but Mamdani’s endorsement and active campaigning alongside her boosted her visibility. She campaigned on affordable housing, immigrant rights, and expanding the social safety net.
“Tonight wasn’t our night, but I love you anyway,” Espaillat said in his concession speech to supporters. Espaillat, who immigrated to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic in 1964, said it was the “privilege of my life to serve you, the community, and I will continue to love and serve this community the best way that I can.”
Speaking to Avila Chevalier’s supporters after her victory, Mamdani said, “I was asked time and again, why would I support this campaign? And I said then, I can think of no better person than the daughter of a single mother caseworker who has fought for working people her entire life, who has stood up for New Yorkers unjustly detained by I.C.E., who has called for a foreign policy of investing in babies and not bombs.”
“Every one of us has a story about being let down by our governments, about our representatives … who wouldn’t pick up the phone, doing nothing about the affordability crisis,” Avila Chevalier said in her victory speech. “That ends today.”
Party priorities
Attention is also turning to upcoming Democratic Senate primaries in Michigan and Minnesota, where progressive candidates Abdul El-Sayed and Peggy Flanagan, the state’s lieutenant governor, are among the frontrunners in each race.
The DSA has a higher net favorability among Democratic voters than Democrats in Congress by 13 points, according to a poll highlighted by CNN, while Gallup polling from September found that 66% of Democrats—up from 50% in 2010—view socialism more positively than capitalism.
Some Democrats are also unhappy about the insurgent trend within the party. “I say this with no ill will or animosity: if you hate the Democratic Party, then please don’t run for our nomination,” former Democratic National Committee chair Jaime Harrison posted on X.
“Who is ‘the Democratic Party’ if it’s not the voters?” posted Sen. Chris Murphy (D, Conn.). “Democratic voters choose candidates, not party leaders. And party leaders need to listen to what voters are telling us - and right now they are demanding our party be bolder.”
In another New York race, Democrat Alex Bores, who became a national figurehead for advocating AI-safety regulation, lost a closely watched primary to represent Manhattan’s 12th Congressional District—a contest that was viewed by some political observers as an early test of whether concerns about artificial intelligence would resonate with voters.
Still, Bores hailed the awareness his campaign brought, telling POLITICO, “We came within a whisker of winning it…Getting the message across is far more important than whoever the one person is who represents this district.” In his victory speech, fellow Assemblymember Micah Lasher, also warned the AI companies that took “such an unusual interest” in the race, with some spending millions of dollars to oppose Bores and others to support him, “I won’t be taking my cues from either of you when it comes to protecting our kids, our jobs and our families.”
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