At Forest Hills Stadium, Zohran Mamdani asks for ‘more’

On the precipice of an election in which polls show him ahead by double digits, Zohran Mamdani delivered a message to his supporters: Don’t get complacent.

That message was echoed by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who along with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, headlined a massive rally for the Democratic New York City mayoral nominee at Forest Hills Stadium on Sunday night.

“Over these nine final days, I ask for only one thing from each of you: more,” Mamdani told an electric crowd, promising that their final-stretch efforts door-knocking and canvassing are what will deliver a Mamdani mayoralty focused on affordability.

The broader message of the “NYC is not for sale” rally was just that: a celebration of Mamdani’s grassroots victory in June’s Democratic primary and a rebuke of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s campaign – and notably billionaires and millionaires who have funded PACs supporting him and opposing Mamdani.

“Let us win a City Hall that works for those straining to buy groceries, not those straining to buy our democracy,” Mamdani told the crowd, near the end of the roughly three-hour rally.

Speakers included labor leaders, Socialists in Office, Comptroller and former mayoral candidate Brad Lander, and state legislative leaders Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Carl Heastie.

But the most notable speaker was Gov. Kathy Hochul, an upstate moderate Democrat who endorsed Mamdani in September.

In a rally headlined by the most famous socialists in the country, Hochul is an obvious outsider. But her appearance seemed aimed at demonstrating the breadth of Mamdani’s tent. But big tents can get uncomfortably crowded. Hochul’s remarks were drowned out several times by chants of “tax the rich” – a proposal crucial to funding much of Mamdani’s policy platform but running counter to Hochul’s establishment backing and her own stated intention not to raise taxes on the wealthy.

Hochul managed the tension – which will factor heavily into her relationship with a potential Mamdani administration next year – reasonably well. Trying to ignore the chants at first, she eventually relented, saying, “I hear you,” with a smile. The line got some cheers.

Though he didn’t make his remarks until the end of the night, Mamdani appeared briefly on stage soon after the “tax the rich” chant and hoisted Hochul’s hand in the air: a vote of confidence for the crowd.

Early voting started on Saturday, and the rally capped off an eventful get out the vote weekend for the whole field. Cuomo also attended a rally in Queens on Sunday. His was on the theme: “Stand with Israel,” and he spoke from a flatbed truck with City Council Member James Gennaro and Assembly Members David Weprin and Sam Berger, Politico’s Jeff Coltin reported. 

Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa’s weekend stops included voting early on the Upper West Side, and attending a Halloween festival in College Point with GOP City Council Member Vickie Paladino, Queens Eagle’s Ryan Schwach reported.