Mamdani endorses primary challenger over Democratic incumbent in House race

[0:00] Ever since Iran Mamdani was elected, there has been a lot of debate about what that means for the future of the Democratic Party. [0:07] And Mayor Mamdani has not been shy about wading into that debate. [0:11] In New York's 10th congressional district, Mayor Mamdani endorsed his political ally, Brad Lander, in a primary challenge against incumbent Congressman Dan Goldman. [0:19] A recent Emerson poll finds Brad Lander is now leading Dan Goldman in that race by a whopping 34 points. [0:25] Now, in the race to replace retiring Congresswoman Nidia Velasquez, the mayor backed fellow Democratic Socialist and State Assembly member Claire Valdez over Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, [0:36] who is the backing of many New York Democrats, including the outgoing Congresswoman, whose seat it currently is. [0:42] A recent Emerson poll found that race neck and neck, with the mayor's candidate leading by two points within the poll's margin of error. [0:49] Now, today, The New York Times writes that the mayor has a choice to make in another contested primary. [0:54] In New York's 13th district, 71-year-old incumbent Congressman Adriano Espaillat is facing a primary challenge from 32-year-old Democratic Socialist Darylisa Avila-Chevalier. [1:08] Congressman Espaillat has represented the district since 2017, when he became the first formally undocumented person to win a seat in Congress. [1:16] He backed Mayor Mamdani's rival, Andrew Cuomo, in the Democratic primary for mayor last year, but was among the first Cuomo supporters to endorse Mamdani after he won the primary. [1:27] Now, the mayor is ready to make an endorsement in that race, an announcement in that race. [1:32] Pretty significant. [1:33] New York City mayor Isaron Mamdani is back with me, and joining him is Democratic House candidate for New York's 13th district, Darylisa Avila-Chevalier. [1:41] Mr. Mayor, I think the hint here is who is sitting next to you, obviously, but tell us about your announcement and why you decided to endorse. [1:51] You know, I am so excited to be sitting here with Darylisa, and I'm so excited to be endorsing her in her run for Congress. [1:58] She is the daughter of a single mom caseworker, and she grew up with a commitment to the very people that politics have left behind. [2:05] And what I see in her is that commitment fulfilled. [2:08] This is a New Yorker who has not only secured the release of our neighbors from undue ICE custody, also someone who has been on the front lines of that fight for affordability. [2:18] And I can't wait for her to be introduced to so many across the city and across this country as we fight for that affordability agenda from New York City to D.C. [2:28] Darylisa, you're running for Congress. [2:31] Your opponent, as you know, in this race is no stranger to contested primaries. [2:35] For people who are, again, just catching up here, he primaried former Congressman Charlie Rangel twice before eventually winning his seat in Congress. [2:42] That's part of our democratic process. [2:44] But he's a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. [2:47] He's led on issues like immigration, ones that you care about deeply as well. [2:50] He was at the Delaney Hall ICE Detention Center conducting oversight this week. [2:55] Tell us why you would be better to represent this district. [2:58] Yeah, well, first of all, thank you so much for having me. [3:00] I'm so excited to be here and I'm so excited to be sitting next to the mayor. [3:04] I am someone who has felt deeply abandoned by the establishment politics that far too often see my community as merely a statistic, [3:13] that far too often only shows up to explain away the circumstances, that the politics that they have voted for time and time again, [3:22] which have impacted our community in ways that that they do not feel the effects of. [3:27] And as someone who has had to live with the question of whether I can even afford to stay in the city I love, [3:33] as someone who has struggled with this issue of affordability, but yet seen time and time again my tax dollars, [3:39] New Yorkers' tax dollars, be used to bomb children and families abroad instead of being invested in our communities here, [3:45] I am tired of that type of politics and I'm running because I believe my community deserves the dignity of a representative [3:52] who is going to fight tooth and nail for the things that they deserve. [3:56] You were an active part. I think people are getting to know you right now. [4:00] So I'm introducing some parts of your biography. [4:02] You were an active part of the campus protests at Columbia University. [4:05] And Columbia, of course, became a national flashpoint in American politics after those protests [4:11] and after their decision to cave to the Trump administration last year. [4:15] Columbia is in the district. [4:17] And if you win, you'll be representing them in Congress. [4:20] How are you thinking about that responsibility? [4:24] You know, I understand the enormity of the responsibility that my community has entrusted me with, [4:30] and I do not take that for granted. [4:31] I am deeply honored and grateful for this opportunity. [4:36] And I, you know, like so many, I really feel that this is a fight to make sure that we are representing [4:42] working-class New Yorkers who have been left behind by a politics that only serves the interests of corporations, [4:48] of corporate landlords, of special interest groups that are making life in New York deeply unaffordable for so many, [4:55] while we watch atrocities being committed with our tax dollars. [4:58] Our tax dollars should come back to our communities. [5:01] Institutions like Columbia and corporate lobbies and real estate developers who are making life so unaffordable for our communities [5:09] are part of this establishment politics that have failed us. [5:13] And so I'm running because I'm fighting for the working people of New York 13. [5:16] But even more than that, I'm fighting because I believe that we deserve a politic in our entire country [5:22] that is actually reflective of a politics of life and not a politics of death. [5:26] Mayor Ramadhani, now I just outlined some of this. [5:30] You endorsed in a number of these races. [5:32] There is, I know you're well aware of this, quite a hotly contested primary in New York's 12th congressional district, [5:38] where I believe you currently live. [5:41] Yes, I do reside within it. [5:42] You do. [5:43] You would be a constituent of sorts. [5:45] Are you planning to make an endorsement in that race before Election Day? [5:49] You know, this is the endorsement that I'm so proud to make. [5:52] And I can tell you that this completes my congressional slate that I'm so proud of. [5:57] And, you know, last June, last November, those victories that so many New Yorkers rallied behind, [6:04] we knew that they were not just victories for one elected office. [6:08] They were victories of a movement that was seeking to turn the page on a politics of big money and small ideas, [6:13] on a politics that would leave working people behind. [6:17] And in Claire Valdez, Brad Lander, and now Dottie Elisa, I see embodiments of that vision. [6:23] And I'm so excited to not only endorse them and support them, [6:26] but also that New Yorkers will have the opportunity to vote for them this June. [6:31] So no more endorsements coming from you in these congressional primaries, [6:35] not even in the very hotly contested one where you live, it sounds like. [6:38] Is that right? [6:39] I can tell you that I, as a voter, I will be voting in that primary. [6:43] Of course, but no more public endorsements. [6:45] In terms of my endorsements, this is my final congressional endorsements for New York City. [6:49] And I'm so incredibly excited that it's Dottie Elisa. [6:51] And I just want to focus on her candidacy and what she brings to this race. [6:56] Truly, to me, it is a person who will be on the front lines of showing that a Democratic Party, [7:03] it is not enough for us to simply be against federal policies that we see today. [7:08] We have to be fighting for a vision that reckons with the fact that working people [7:12] were not left behind just four years ago or 16 years ago. [7:16] They were left behind a long time before that. [7:19] And it will take a new generation of leadership to ensure that the heartbeat of this party [7:23] is once again the struggles of the working class. [7:26] And in electing a champion like Dottie Elisa to represent uptown Manhattan and the Bronx, [7:31] we could have exactly that in Congress. [7:33] I am so grateful that you both took the time to be here. [7:37] Let me ask you quickly, with like about 30 seconds left here, what's advice you would [7:41] give to Democrats out there who are trying to balance between telling the story of what [7:46] they're going to do on issues like cost of living and allaying the case about corruption [7:51] and other issues that their opponents are full of? [7:53] I'm thinking of people like James Tallarico. [7:56] You know, I think that there are some Democrats who definitely don't need my advice. [8:00] They're doing a good job. [8:01] What I would say generally, though, is you do have to find the balance in showing that [8:04] you're more than just not the other person. [8:07] You are also someone who has a vision for what life will be like in this city and in [8:11] this country. [8:11] And it has felt like too long that the Republicans have had a monopoly on the terms of the debate [8:17] in our country. [8:18] The Democrats have just sought to respond to it time and time again. [8:21] It is time for us to put forward our own ideas. [8:24] It is time for uptown Manhattan and the Bronx to be part of leading what this country thinks [8:29] is possible. [8:29] And I'll tell you, when I go around this city and I see so many incredible monuments [8:33] to things like the Four Freedoms, and I think about the way we used to distill our ambition [8:39] into easily understandable ways that New Yorkers and Americans understood impacted their lives, [8:44] I realize that we have come a long way from where we used to be as a party. [8:48] It's time we have a new generation that not only takes us back to that ambition, but takes [8:52] us forward to the tomorrow that so many New Yorkers are waiting for. [8:54] It's a perfect place to end. [8:57] New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani and Daria Lisa Avila-Chevalier, thank you both for joining [9:01] me tonight. [9:02] Thank you so much. [9:03] Thanks for having us. [9:03] I should note, Congressman Adriano Espeyat has an open invitation to come on the show and [9:08] make his case to voters as well.