(NewsNation) — Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo conceded Tuesday night to Zohran Mamdani in the New York City mayoral primary, as the 33-year-old Socialist Democratic candidate held a substantial lead with the race heading to a ranked-choice count.
“Tonight was not our night,” Cuomo told his supporters Tuesday evening. “Tonight was Assemblyman Mamdani’s night.”
New York City permits mail-in votes postmarked by primary day to be counted for a week after, so the subsequent rounds of ranked choice voting aren’t likely to be released until next July 1.
“Decision Desk HQ projects no candidate will reach the 50% plus threshold in the first round, sending the New York City Democratic Mayoral primary to Ranked-Choice Voting,” said Scott Tranter, DDHQ’s director of data science. “The City of New York will have their first release of the RCV votes next Tuesday.”
Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist endorsed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., stunned observers Tuesday night with his strong showing against the former governor.
Cuomo was seemingly cruising in the polls until Zohran began to gain momentum in recent weeks. Cuomo announced in May that he would run for the office even if he lost the Democratic primary, but seemed less committed to that idea Tuesday night.
“I want to look at all the numbers as they come in and analyze the rank choice voting,” he said in a statement. “I will then consult with my colleagues on what is the best path for me to help the City of New York, as I have already qualified to run for mayor on an independent line in November.”
Follow the latest results below:
The latest polling from Emerson College and The Hill showed Mamdani with a razor-thin lead ahead of Cuomo in the final round of ranked-choice voting.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams is off the ballot, but he’s not out of the race. He is simply running as an independent.
Cuomo had been considered the favorite, but the polling lead had dwindled in the weeks leading up to Tuesday.
Mamdani made a late surge in the polls. What makes him different compared to other candidates is that he is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Mamdani also received two key endorsements from Senator Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. On Tuesday, supermodel Emily Ratajkowski shared a video on social media with Mamdani.
Nearly 400,000 voted early in the primary, more than double at this point of the last primary in 2021.
The winner of the Democratic primary will face off against Adams, as well as Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, the founder of the nonprofit Guardian Angels, in the general election in November.
NewsNation partner The Hill contributed to this report.