At a lively “Fighting Oligarchy” town hall in Brooklyn College on Saturday, Senator Bernie Sanders issued a sharp critique of New York’s Democratic leadership for failing to endorse mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
Appearing alongside Mamdani, Sanders framed the race as emblematic of a broader struggle within the Democratic Party.
Zohran Mamdani is spearheading the mayoral race with more than 40% support among likely New York City voters, an AARP New York-Gotham Polling & Analytics poll revealed in August.
The 33-year-old rising politician, who ran a campaign with grassroots activism on issues like cost of living, housing and public transportation, continues to lead former governor Andrew Cuomo with double-digit margins.
Great event at Brooklyn College with @ZohranKMamdani.
The NYC mayor’s race is not just about who wins. It’s about whether ordinary citizens have ANY power in our democracy, or whether billionaires control it all. We can’t let them win. pic.twitter.com/7Ran09BSCm
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 7, 2025
“We’ve got another fight on our hands, and that is the future of the Democratic Party,” Sanders declared, warning that the party’s direction hangs in the balance.
Mamdani represents New York progressives and calls himself a Democratic Socialist, who cares more about New Yorkers than foreign policy issues like support for Israel.
Sanders directly called out top New York Democrats — including Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries — for their silence in the high-stakes mayoral race.
Bernie Sanders says the mayor’s race is a “test case” for whether we still live in a democracy.
“What are the oligarchs afraid of? Seems to be a nice guy… They’re afraid of Mr. Mamdani becoming an example of what can happen all over this country.”
The crowd stands and cheers. pic.twitter.com/vXUHRg9S4b— Emma G. Fitzsimmons (@emmagf) September 6, 2025
“I find it hard to understand how the major Democratic leaders in New York State are not supporting the Democratic candidate,” he said, expressing disbelief that the party hasn’t embraced Mamdani’s grassroots-driven campaign.
“One might think that if a candidate starting at 2% in the polls gets 50,000 volunteers, creates enormous excitement, gets young people involved in the political process, gets nontraditional voters to vote — Democratic leaders would be jumping up and down. ‘This is our guy!’” Sanders remarked.
The Democratic leaders have not publicly reacted to the comments so far.
Iftikhar Ali is a veteran Pakistani journalist, former president of UN Correspondents Association, and a recipient of the Pride of Performance civil award
