Just one year ago, Zohran Mamdani was a little-known assemblyman in New York best known for his work delivering debt relief to the city’s taxi drivers. In just over 12 months, Mamdani has transformed into a progressive political icon with a national profile envied by his contemporaries in US politics. Mamdani’s improbable rise owes much to a circle of key advisers and political allies, many of whom share a background in progressive, left-wing politics.
Of them, Mamdani’s senior adviser Elle Bisgaard-Church is widely regarded as the most influential. Like Mamdani, Bisgaard-Church is just 34 years old and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. She managed Mamdani’s successful primary campaign against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who was initially heavily favoured to win the race.
Bisgaard-Church is also credited with keeping the campaign laser-focused on affordability and quality of life issues, like freezing rent and ensuring free buses for New Yorkers. After Mamdani clinched the Democratic nomination, she subsequently moved to a new role as senior adviser, laying the policy groundwork for Mamdani to take over as mayor. She is widely expected to be one of Mamdani’s closest advisers as he takes office. Maya Handa, another young progressive operative, took over from Bisgaard-Church as Mamdani’s campaign manager.
Political strategist Morris Katz, 26, helped raise Mamdani’s political profile and sharpened his widely praised communications strategy. Creative director Andrew Epstein has been credited as the force behind Mamdani’s viral social media success. Videos of Mamdani walking the streets of New York, jumping into freezing water, engaging with voters and referencing Bollywood movies created a warm, authentic and likeable persona. Even Mamdani’s sceptics have acknowledged that his social media campaign has been one of the most slick and successful in recent memory. Tascha van Auken helped organise Mamdani’s thousands of volunteers who took Zohran’s message across to the city’s roughly 8 million inhabitants.
{{/usCountry}}Political strategist Morris Katz, 26, helped raise Mamdani’s political profile and sharpened his widely praised communications strategy. Creative director Andrew Epstein has been credited as the force behind Mamdani’s viral social media success. Videos of Mamdani walking the streets of New York, jumping into freezing water, engaging with voters and referencing Bollywood movies created a warm, authentic and likeable persona. Even Mamdani’s sceptics have acknowledged that his social media campaign has been one of the most slick and successful in recent memory. Tascha van Auken helped organise Mamdani’s thousands of volunteers who took Zohran’s message across to the city’s roughly 8 million inhabitants.
{{/usCountry}}Seasoned Democratic politician Patrick Gaspard, who served as a senior adviser to Barack Obama and as US ambassador to South Africa, helped Mamdani’s campaign reach out to a sceptical New York political establishment.
Mamdani also benefited from high profile political endorsements. Fellow progressive politicians Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders backed his candidacy, with Ocasio-Cortez serving as a key political mentor. New York City comptroller Brad Lander also backed Mamdani, which helped him reach out to Jewish voters. This proved particularly important, given concerns that Mamdani’s strident criticism of Israel would cost him support among Jewish voters in New York City.
Mamdani on Wednesday formed a transition team with political strategist Elana Leopold as executive director. She will work with United Way of New York City president Grace Bonilla, former deputy mayor Melanie Hartzog, who was also a city budget official, former federal trade commission chair Lina Khan, and former first deputy mayor Maria Torres-Springer.