The Fix: Zohran Mamdani and the Democrats' Imaginary Reality

If Trump's authoritarianism exposes the party as out of its depth, Mamdani's victory shows where it's headed.

Left: Zohran Mamdami. Right: Chuck Schumer. Credit: Lev Radin (left), Consolidated News Photos (right) / Shutterstock

When an incumbent leader is unpopular, the opposition usually reaps the dividends. This is not happening for the Democratic Party, however. The reason is obvious: In the face of an unprecedented authoritarian power-grab, the party is widely—and correctly—perceived as not putting up a fight.

The stunning victory of Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, in New York City’s mayoral primary last week is just the latest example. The significance of his triumph is hard to overstate.

Despite suffering an extreme disadvantage in funding and an all-out assault from the party establishment, wealthy donors, and prominent news outlets, he still won—and won decisively. He did so on the back of a multiracial, cross-class coalition that extended to places where one would not expect a far-left politician to succeed, such as Manhattan’s posh Upper East Side and working-class neighborhoods in Queens.

Mamdani’s victory is not an outlier. From the start of Donald Trump’s second term, the Democratic rank-and-file has been in open rebellion against a feckless party establishment that is seemingly oblivious to America’s new authoritarian reality.

When an opposition party suddenly faces a would-be dictator who is upending the constitutional order, it can take a while to find its bearings. Having studied similar situations in other countries, however, I do understand how it works.

To be sure, authoritarianism poses serious obstacles for the opposition. But it also creates opportunities—especially when the authoritarian leader in question is an incompetent, self-aggrandizing nitwit with no impulse control.

At the same time, if the opposition is too slow to adapt, it can find itself overtaken by events. This, unfortunately, is the path the Democrats are currently on. Absent a fundamental rethinking of their approach, they run the risk of being left behind by the movement they are supposed to lead.

The warning signs are everywhere. But so are the solutions.