It happened in a New York minute. A transformation so complete and sudden it stunned even this long-time observer of US politics.
In a matter of months, Zohran Mamdani achieved the unthinkable: from a rank outsider with very little name recognition to becoming the mayor of New York on an unapologetically left-wing platform.
Over a million votes were cast for a candidate who was polling at just six per cent in January.
So, let’s delve a bit deeper and examine how Mamdani became the hottest ticket in town. In PR terms, what can we learn from his victory? What did he do so differently?
The three ‘C’s of political campaigns
Great political campaigns are built on clarity, creativity, and change. And Mamdani’s big, bold, positive policy agenda was evident from day one.
Clarity: The affordability message was clear and consistent throughout. From pamphlets to social posts to TV interviews, every single piece of comms was laser-focused on landing three key messages. Rent freezes. Free public buses. Universal childcare. And he wasn’t afraid to repeat those simple messages. Wherever and whenever he could. The strategy was a winning one.
Creativity: The campaign really came alive on social media, and his often-playful campaign ads gave him the edge over his rivals: creating a compelling counter-narrative that legions of voters could connect with.
Energy. Positivity. Humour. The new kid on the block had echoes of early Obama. A natural communicator, some of his most shared videos were those unscripted, ad-hoc, off-the-cuff moments that can either make or break a candidate on the campaign trail. The cyclist clip, where a passerby heckled ‘communist’ as he mounted his bike, and he immediately retorted with: ‘It’s pronounced cyclist’, stood out as an example of his quick wit.
Because of the ‘outsider’ tag, he built an online persona of the ‘unplanned influencer’. Less stage-managed: his campaign looked and felt very different in the billionaire age of big politics and big money. Here was a man who was still going clubbing in Brooklyn the weekend before the election. More than ever, authenticity counts for a lot on social media and in political campaigns.
The bold creativity of the social media operation supercharged everything. The PR strategy primarily focused on engaging his critics (and let’s face it, he had a great many, including from his own party ranks) and neutralising the negatives with humour. Take the happy birthday ad that bravely played on his lack of experience for the top job. A bold PR gamble that paid off and helped propel him into office as the youngest NYC mayor in over a century.
There are countless examples of his deft use of social media: the ‘halalflation’ video was another bold move, but again it paid off. Or the risky counterpunch of releasing a new campaign video entirely in Arabic and featuring the Palestinian flag when rivals had just run a series of attack ads criticising, amongst many things, his strong pro-Gaza stance.
Flexibility was another hallmark of the campaign. The Democratic candidate’s readiness to listen to his detractors and moderate his position on key issues at pivotal moments helped turn the tide. On law and order, for example, he apologised for a previous remark when he called police officers ‘racist’. He also pledged to maintain current levels of police staffing and announced his intention to keep the incumbent police commissioner in post. This was designed to preserve stability during a time of political transition and helped ease fears that the new administration would be soft on crime.
Change: It was the unifying message of positivity and hope in a divisive political landscape that became the ultimate catalyst for change. Setting an inclusive, multilingual tone brought people and communities together: younger voters mobilised en masse, energised by the affordability message. Like Obama before him, a youthful volunteer-led grassroots momentum swept Mamdani to victory.
Clarity, creativity and change. Zohran and his media-savvy team mastered all three.
Big comms challenges surely lie ahead for the new mayor as he will draw plenty of fire from the right, not least the President. Campaigning is very different to governing, especially in a big city like New York. He will need to learn on the job – and quickly.
Mamdani’s remarkable rise has shown us that bold political campaigns built on simplicity, creativity and clarity can drive change, inspire younger voters and make history.
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