Democratic mayoral nominee and Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani (A.D. 36) was back in The Bronx on Sept. 2 when he was joined by a majority of Bronx elected officials from the Bronx Democratic Party, alongside New York Attorney General Letitia James, New York City Public Advocate Jumanne Williams, and others as they gave the candidate their formal endorsement in his upcoming bid to win the mayoral general election on Nov. 4.

 

Among those gathered were Bronx Democratic Party Chair State Sen. Jamaal Bailey (S.D. 36), State Sen. Luis Sepúleva (S.D. 32), State Sen. Robert Jackson (S.D. 31), State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33), State Sen. Nathalia Fernandez (S.D. 34) Assemblymember George Alvarez (A.D. 78), Assemblymember Karines Reyes (A.D. 87), Assemblymember Amanda Septimo (A.D. 84), Assemblymember Emerita Torres (A.D. 85), Assemblymember Landon Dais (A.D. 77), Councilmember Pierina Sanchez (C.D. 14), Oswald Feliz (C.D. 15), Councilmember Diana Ayala (C.D. 8), District Leader John Doyle (A.D. 82), District Leader Abigail Martin (A.D. 80), and others, including several union members.

 

For his part, Bailey said multiple conversations had been held with members of the Party, “multiple phone calls, multiple meetings, zooms, multiple forms of communication” to arrive at the point of an endorsement for Mamdani. Borrowing a phrase from State Senate Speaker Sen. Andrea Stewart Cousins, he said, “When Democrats vote, Democrats win.” He said this was what had to be done.

 

He highlighted the problems the country was facing in the form of vaccine reduction and price inflation. “We can’t have that,” he said. “We need to make sure that we have a steady hand, a bold, brave, new vision for the City that we love, and that’s exactly what we’re doing today.” He said this year’s primary had told the Party many things about what’s happening, informing the Party that affordability was key. “There is no other place than in The Bronx you’re going to make $1 out of 15 cents, but the reality is that we shouldn’t have to do that,” Bailey said.

The Party chair continued in part, “We should be able to enjoy the city that we live in while not being held burdened, held hostage, to rent.” He said people should be able to afford groceries and childcare, and to live in their homes. He said as a father, he was lucky he had somebody to take care of his children and recognized that not everybody had that same luxury.

 

He talked about the energy of young voters this year in the primary and how they felt they had something to vote for, instead of leaving the city. “The 18 to 35 demographic spiked like it never did, just because of a bold and brave new vision, a man who’s not afraid to walk with the people, literally walking the streets the entire length of Manhattan to hear the concerns of the people,” Bailey said.

 

The senator went on to say, “This is what we need in this day and time, new fresh ideas, bold ideas, boundless energy. Now, we’re not going to agree on everything, but we had tough conversations. Every single one of us in this crowd have had tough conversation with each other. Can’t find a person in this crowd that has had unilateral assent on anything.” Bailey said instead they looked for commonalities [for the greater good].

 

He continued, “What I can tell you is that Zohran loves this city, every single inch of this city, every person in this city, regardless of who you are. Now, there’s no democracy without dissent, and there’s nothing wrong with a little difference. We’ve come together for what matters; that is what will make this city continue to rise.”

 

Bailey commended Mamdani’s character, saying, “He has made a commitment to The Bronx, to learn about The Bronx, to continue to learn about The Bronx, but he went to high school in The Bronx, and he has a connection to The Bronx.”

 

Many of the other speakers and elected officials also said there was more common ground than difference between them when it came to endorsing the assemblyman and that the key point about the campaign was that residents were telling them the cost of living was too high.

 

For his part, Feliz said parents in his district were struggling and people were demanding changes and the prioritization of the needs of working people with the likes of free buses and better public transportation, so that students and parents alike could get to work or school on time. He said Bronxites were also demanding that their city, state, and federal elected officials do something about the rent so that people could “have a stable place they can call home.”

 

Feliz said many feel they’re “getting priced out because things are getting too expensive.” He said endorsing Mamdani was also about respecting democracy given that out of the candidates who ran in the Democratic Primary, he was the people’s choice. “The Democratic voters of this city spoke loudly, clearly, and they elected Zoran Mamdani,” he said.

 

Like Bailey, Feliz said he didn’t agree with Mamdani on 100% of the issues. “But that’s okay,” he said. “It’s not the end of the world. I’ve been in this beautiful world for 34 years, and I’ve never met someone that I agree with 100% of the time. Even when there’s disagreement, I can guarantee you that Zohran will always enter the room, not to speak to you but to listen to you, and by listening, I’m talking about truly listening to you with an open ear not just pretending to be listening, but truly listening to you and the challenges that you face.”

 

He said it was time to get behind Mamdani and build a city New Yorkers deserve.

 

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson later explained that she was unable to make the event, issuing a statement saying, “A scheduling conflict kept the Borough President from joining yesterday’s Mayoral endorsement press conference, but she wants to clear up any confusion— she stands with the Bronx Democratic County Committee in supporting Zohran Mamdani as the Democratic Nominee for Mayor.”

 

Mamdani had said during the press conference that indeed it was his understanding that the BP was unable to make the event. Gibson later campaigned on behalf of the assemblyman in the borough along with her colleagues. Mamdani had also been asked about the absence from the Bronx endorsement event of State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (A.D. 83) and he said it was his understanding that Heastie was recovering from surgery.

Later that month, during a tour of Northwest Bronx YMCA, Heastie highlighted Mamdani’s plan to make the city affordable for his constituents in one of the districts with the largest Black populations in the city amid rising costs which he said continue to drive Black New Yorkers out of it.

 

Mamdani’s campaign said his movement for a more affordable New York City was formed with Bronx residents at the forefront, and he later explained during a separate campaign trip to the borough that after U.S. President Donald Trump won the presidency in 2024, he spent some time listening to small business owners and residents on Fordham Road.

 

They said his agenda includes a plan to freeze the rent for more than two million rent-stabilized tenants. His campaign said that as of 2017, rent-stabilized apartments comprise around 61% of occupied rental apartments in The Bronx, making more than 250,000 rent-stabilized housing units in the borough.

 

Among some other absent Bronx elected officials from the endorsement gathering were Assemblyman Michael Benedetto, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and City Councilman Eric Dinowitz. The latter later told Norwood News during an unrelated event that there had been some interactions with Mamdani’s campaign about differences of opinion but that at that point, he was waiting on Mamdani’s team to get back to him on the points he raised.

 

The mayoral, and other, general elections in New York City take place on Tuesday, Nov. 4. Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Early voting begins Saturday, Oct. 25, through Sunday, Nov. 2. The voter registration deadline is Saturday, Oct. 25, which is the last day your application can be received by the Board of Elections to be eligible to vote. For more information, visit  https://www.nycvotes.org/how-to-vote/elections-calendar/#voter+registration+deadline.

 

Editor’s Note: In an earlier version of this story, we reported that State Sen. José Serrano (S.D. 29) attended the event. Although he was due to attend according to an earlier press release, we’re not sure if he make it finally. We’ve reached out to his team for clarification.