Inside the campaign of Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist running for mayor of New York City

Zohran Mamdani could barely walk a few feet at Thursday’s Juneteenth festival in Queens without a crowd of selfie-demanding admirers trying to stop him.

Zohran Mamdani could barely walk a few feet at a recent Juneteenth festival in Queens without a crowd of selfie-demanding admirers trying to stop him. Mamdani is a 33-year-old state assemblyman and democratic socialist who’s surged in the campaign for New York City mayor with a mix of viral videos and proposals appealing to younger progressives. He’s capitalized on progressive frustration with Andrew Cuomo, the former New York governor mounting a political comeback with a mayoral run; in one of his videos, he explains New York City’s ranked-choice voting system in Hindi and Urdu and likens Cuomo to a Bollywood villain. Now running as Cuomo’s top rival in Tuesday’s primary, Mamdani’s rise has also caused growing consternation from the Democratic establishment. His critics argue his platform is too far to the left for moderates and certain to be weaponized by local and national Republicans trying to paint the Democratic Party as out of touch. He’s also faced criticism about how he’s addressed the Israel-Hamas war. That concern was hard to find at Thursday’s festival in Queens. Mamdani stood onstage awkwardly but joyfully two-stepping and swaying side to side next to other candidates in the primary. Then he walked through the park on a sweltering day, joking that he was fine in his wool suit because he had on an undershirt. “We’ve seen a campaign that is powered by the hunger of New Yorkers for a new generation of leadership,” Mamdani told CNN. Here’s what to know about Mamdani and his campaign.