With victory all but assured, Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist who ran an energetic campaign centered on the cost of living, told supporters, “I will be your Democratic nominee for the mayor of New York City.

In the words of Nelson Mandela, ‘It always seems impossible until it is done,’” the democratic socialist said.

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.