Want to understand the Zohran phenomenon? Here's a mini reading list.

Have you thanked a bodega cat today? Remember, they won’t be getting raises under the new administration. For 51% of New York City bipeds, however, it’s a pretty great week. Zohran Mamdani, the charming upstart, will be our new mayor. And the first Muslim American, democratic socialist to take Gracie Mansion.

Given the generally grim organizing conditions, it’s nice to celebrate this historic win. But how did it happen? I turned to the experts. Here are some essays and analyses from our finest political writers showing how this victory came about, what we might learn from it, and what’s ahead for progressives and lefties looking to govern.

So, for starters. How did we get here?

In an essay for Jewish Currents, Kim Phillips-Fein historicizes the Zohran phenomenon—by looking at another socialist “who ran an unexpectedly successful” mayoral campaign.

Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia’s governing template provides some “instructive points of comparison” for today’s democratic socialists. The pro-union, NYCHA-founding leader who fought Tammany Hall and improved New York City’s public infrastructure proves there’s precedent for big social change in this town.

In this charming NYRB profile, Dan Chiasson hit the campaign trail with the mayor-elect, observing his moves around the city.

This inside scoop shows how Mamdani built trust across a wide swathe of New Yorkers—especially through his menu selections.

In The New Republic, Alex Shephard analyzed the nitty-gritty successes.

This piece praises the policies and performances that made Mamdani’s campaign so energetic and unique. Shephard also indicates the lessons the Democratic Party might take from the candidate’s example.

For a zoomed out look at how polling has stunted progressive candidates like Mamdani, consider a pair of deep dives.

In this Boston Review essay, Lily Hu examines some fraught new polling metrics and troubles the case for data-driven political strategy. And in this quick summer piece from New York magazine, Ed Kilgore explains why the numbers don’t always show the full political picture. Wonkier reads, to be sure—but these both provide useful context for those looking to understand why the Democratic Party can be so timid before numbers.

And In These Times considers what this win means for public morale. 

Writing in praise of Mayor Z, Eman Abdelhadi personalizes the housing plight that launched his campaign. Luis Feliz Leon shows how union support shaped this come-up. And labor scholar Hamilton Nolan reminds us to breathe, and take the (rare) win.

Now, let’s consider what’s around the corner. 

This Batul Hassan piece in Jacobin summarizes some of Mamdani’s more popular plans.

Specifically his proposed transit, childcare, climate, and housing policies. Elsewhere on this leftie hub, you can find sharp election night analysis and informed commentary from editors Corey Robin and David Sirota.

This piece from Hadas Thier in Hammer & Hope considers the socialist organizing conditions in several cities.

This “clearheaded assessment” of the left’s institutional strengths and weaknesses considers how the DSA has (and might) harness its grassroots coalition to make lasting change. Thier reminds us that progressives and lefties are in for a marathon, not a sprint. “While much can be done from inside City Hall, building broader democratic institutions remains primarily a job for left organizations.”

For The Baffler, David I. Backer broke down some of the infrastructural hurdles in the mayor’s future.

More specifically? The unsexy but world-shaping municipal bond market. “As socialists take executive office at the municipal level and attempt to realize their ambitions for the working class, they have had to grapple with this often misunderstood arena of subnational public finance easily dismissible by those claiming to traffic in cold, hard facts,” writes Backer.

This is a great read if you’re looking to understand why taxing the rich is easier said than done.

And for The New Yorker, Eric Lach’s election night dispatch considers the hills ahead. 

This historic win, Lach writes, “will test whether New York City can get good government, or at least better government, by having a mayor who is more committed to a leftist ideology than any in the city’s history.”

Here’s looking at you, Mayor Z. Let’s hope your win is the start of something new—in this town and beyond.