Democratic State Senator Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33) announced Wednesday, April 30, he is backing New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani as the City’s next mayor. Mamdani, a progressive Democrat, represents the 36th assembly district of the New York State Assembly in Queens since 2021. The senator also communicated his support of other mayoral candidates.

 

Rivera, also a progressive Democrat, whose district broadly includes the neighborhoods of Norwood, Fordham, Belmont, Riverdale, and Kingsbridge Heights, has represented The Bronx since 2010, and is the current chair of the senate health committee. According to Mamdani’s team, the senator’s endorsement is a key victory for the candidate, who his team said is expanding outreach efforts to Latino and Black communities in the outer-boroughs. Rivera is the longest-serving state legislator to endorse Mamdani, a fluent Spanish speaker, to date.

 

According to Mamdani’s team, “the race is clearly shaping up to be Andrew Cuomo vs. Zohran Mamdani as the last four polls have each shown.” They said, last week, Mamdani became the first candidate to air a television advertisement with a six figure ad buy aimed at Cuomo’s failed record, and in March, Mamdani became the first candidate to reach the fundraising cap at the fastest rate in New York City history.

“I am honored to have the support of Sen. Gustavo Rivera, a lifelong fighter for The Bronx and a once-in-a-generation New York City leader,” Mamdani said. “This is a historic moment for our campaign and a testament to the momentum we’ve built. With the support of Senator Rivera, we will continue to share our vision for cheaper groceries, a rent freeze, and universal childcare with more New Yorkers and win this race come June.”  

For Rivera’s part, he said of the endorsement, “The cost of living crisis in NYC is crushing my neighbors in The Bronx, which is why our City needs a principled, progressive leader. Zohran Mamdani has the energy, integrity, and ideas New Yorkers deserve, and that’s why I am so proud to endorse him for Mayor. Freezing the rent, providing universal childcare and making buses fast and free will transform the lives of working class New Yorkers, and with Zohran as Mayor, we can get them done.”  

Born in Uganda and raised in New York City, according to his campaign bio, Mamdani has fought for the working class in and outside the legislature: hunger striking alongside taxi drivers to achieve more than $450 million in transformative debt relief, winning over $100 million in the state budget for increased subway service and a successful fare-free bus pilot, and organizing New Yorkers to defeat a proposed dirty power plant.

According to his campaign, the cost of living is crushing working people but Mamdani believes that government can lower costs and make life easier in New York City. They say he’ll use every tool available to bring down the rent, create world class public transit, and make it easier to raise a family.

Part of his platform includes freezing rent, fast, fare-free buses, no cost childcare, city-owned grocery stores, cracking down on bad landlords, and creating a department of community safety. We’ve reached out to Mamdani’s team to ask how he proposes to fund the programs and will share any details we receive.

After releasing some recent Spanish-language video ads, the candidate was criticized by opponents for allegedly using AI to make the videos. He recently released behind-the-scenes footage of his attempts to record them and get his script correct in order to demonstrate their authenticity.

 

Later on April 30, Rivera released a ranked slate of candidates he is also  backing for New York City mayor in the Democratic primary. After Mamdani, who got ranked first, City Comptroller Brad Lander got second place. The senator then endorsed City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, State Sen. Zellnor Myrie (S.D. 20) who represents parts of Brooklyn, and State Sen. Jessica Ramos (A.D. 13) who represents parts of Queens, without ranking the latter three in any order.

In the lead-up to the June 24th Democratic primary, Rivera said he will be working to support candidates, “leveraging a ranked-choice voting strategy to ensure New York’s next mayor is a champion for Bronx residents and families.”

 

“I’m proud and energized to throw my support behind this stellar slate,” the senator said. “These candidates are in alignment on the critical issues facing my neighbors in The Bronx, prioritizing bold action on housing, healthcare, and the affordability crisis impacting our families.” He added, “They have the integrity needed to rebuild trust in our City’s government and the backbone to stand strong against the federal government’s mayhem. Plus, none of them spent government resources scoring a book deal during a devastating pandemic.”

 

As reported, Mayor Eric Adams recently announced that he is skipping the Democratic mayoral primary and running as an independent in the general mayoral election in November.

Democratic mayoral candidate and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams visited Norwood on Monday, April 28, for the second time in recent weeks. Story to follow. For some recent, related coverage, click here and here.