(NEW YORK) — In the closely watched New York City Democratic mayoral primary, no candidate reached the 50% threshold needed to be declared the winner outright. But after a strong showing in the first round, state Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani declared victory over former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who conceded earlier, in what was shaping up to be a remarkable upset.
The New York City Board of Elections reported as of 10:30 p.m. Tuesday that Mamdani was leading among the candidates voters ranked first on their ballot, with 44% of the vote. Cuomo was second with about 36%. City comptroller Brad Lander followed with about 11%.
The early results amounted to a strong showing for Mamdani, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, who had gained momentum in polling and fundraising in the closing weeks of the campaign and capitalized on social media virality and enthusiasm among younger voters.
In an impassioned speech to supporters shortly after midnight, Mamdani declared, “Tonight, we made history,” adding, “I will be your Democratic nominee for the mayor of New York City.”
To his cheering supporters, Mamdani said, “We have won because New Yorkers have stood up for a city they can afford, a city where they can do more than just struggle, one where those who toil in the night can enjoy the fruits of their labor in the day.”
Cuomo addressed his supporters earlier Tuesday.
“Tonight was not our night; tonight was Assemblyman Mamdani’s night, and he put together a great campaign and he touched young people and inspired them and moved them and got them to come out and vote,” Cuomo said at an event Tuesday night. He added, “Tonight is his night. He deserved it. He won. We’re going to take a look and make some decisions.”
Shortly after his remarks, in a surprise announcement, Cuomo’s campaign said he was conceding the primary and “looking toward November,” indicating he was not ruling out an independent run.
Earlier this spring, Cuomo’s campaign said he would consider running on a “Fight and Deliver” ballot line in the general election that he says is meant for voters disillusioned with the Democratic Party.
Cuomo’s run for mayor was to mark his political comeback nearly four years after he resigned the governorship after several women accused him of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct. Cuomo has consistently denied the allegations.
In the mayoral race, Cuomo has campaigned on a message of being the most experienced in the race and being the candidate who has already taken on President Donald Trump during his time as governor. Mamdani has focused on a progressive, economy-focused platform that included a rent freeze for rent-stabilized apartments and eliminating fares for New York City buses.
Mamdani, who would be the city’s first Muslim mayor and its youngest mayor in a century if elected, faced skepticism over the feasibility of some of his proposals and backlash over some of his comments on Israel.
Even with Cuomo’s announcement, the race is set to proceed to a ranked-choice count since no candidate of the 11 on the ballot got more than 50%.
Tuesday’s results do not yet reflect any ranked-choice tabulation. More comprehensive results won’t be reported until July 1, when the board of elections plans to run the ranked-choice tabulations. Under the city’s ranked choice voting system, if no candidate breaks 50%, the candidate with the least amount of votes is eliminated, and the vote tabulation continues in rounds. In the second round, voters whose first-choice candidate got eliminated get their second-choice vote counted. That keeps going until only two candidates remain, and the candidate in the lead at that point wins the primary.
A spokesperson for the city’s board of elections, Vincent Ignizio, told ABC News that the week-long wait for comprehensive results is due, in part, to the time it takes to retrieve voting machine data.
The Board of Elections plans to finish counting votes over the next few weeks and will certify the results on July 15.
Nearly 1 million New Yorkers voted early or on the day of the primary, per the Board.
During the 2021 Democratic mayoral primary, which was the first time New York City used ranked-choice voting, a total of 942,031 votes were cast in the mayoral race, according to data from the New York City Board of Elections.
In heavily Democratic New York, it’s likely the Democratic primary winner in the mayoral race has the advantage in the general election in November.
Potentially complicating matters however, is the fact that incumbent Democratic Mayor Eric Adams is running as an independent in the fall.
ABC News’ Jack Moore contributed to this report.
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