How the successful Mamdani and Trump campaigns were born from the same strategy: Is populism the path to political victory?

Illustrations by Grace McKenna

A thirty-four year old, Muslim, immigrant, democratic socialist is elected mayor of a city hailed as the center of capitalism just one year after an inexperienced, convicted felon accused of authoritarian rhetoric is elected for the second time to lead the land of the free and one of the most powerful states in the world. I’m Gwynne, The Broad’s new Politics columnist, and I’d like to get to the bottom of this kind of dissonance by exploring the debates that are plaguing political minds worldwide.

A mere 363 days after Donald Trump was elected president of the United States for the second time, democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani dominated the New York City mayoral race with over 50% of the vote. In both 2024 and 2025, Americans and New Yorkers watched with bated breath as candidates who couldn’t be more ideologically at-odds—one a former businessman and the other with only five years in state-level elected office under his belt—defeated their more politically experienced opponents. It was undoubtedly concerns about Joe Biden’s age and capability to lead, as well as Andrew Cuomo’s sexual assault allegations, that made voters wary to put their faith in these established Democrats again.

What’s more shocking is the people they turned to instead. They were not weathered career politicians cut from the same cloth but rather relatively inexperienced, radical figures. What seems to unite Donald Trump—a staunch Republican advocating for a crackdown on immigration, renewal of a fragmented American economy, and the end of the ‘woke’ ideology of the left—and Zohran Mamdani—a democratic socialist candidate promising rent freezes, free buses, and universal child care in a campaign to make New York City more affordable—is their ability to galvanise a working-class population tired of buttoned-up, inaccessible politics run by people to whom they cannot relate. 

Trump and Mamdani might demonstrate the stark polarisation of the American political spectrum better than any other two contemporary figures. Neither one has shied away from expressing their public dislike for the other, with Trump calling Mamdani a ‘pure communist’ and Mamdani blaming Trump for plunging the country into a ‘period of political darkness’. Despite their mutual animosity and opposing stances on just about every political issue in the book, both candidates managed to secure unprecedented victories with very minimal track records in politics, beating out seasoned politicians. This is perhaps indicative of newfound American distrust of career politicians coupled with a growing tendency to vote for people who feel more authentic. 

Trump calls his successful appeal to marginalised Americans—despite rhetoric that many have described as xenophobic and elitist—a ‘movement like nobody’s ever seen before’. Though White Americans made up the majority of his voter base in both 2016 and 2024, Trump saw an increase in support from Black, Hispanic, and female voters in his second successful election. This shift was met with confusion from left-leaning Americans, who pointed to his appointment of anti-abortion Supreme Court justices, hard-line immigration policy, and attacks on DEI programs as indicative of prejudice against these groups. 

Though Mamdani’s immigrant parents—a prominent Ugandan academic at Columbia University and a successful Indian-American filmmaker—did not make Fred Trump’s millions, Mamdani openly describes his childhood as ‘privileged’. He attended a private primary school and studied at Bowdoin College, which charges a tuition of over $50,000. Nonetheless, he has built his platform around advocacy for the large working and immigrant classes in New York City, candidly sharing his plans to impose a 2% tax on incomes over $1 million and to raise the corporate tax to 11.5% to match New Jersey. In his victory speech on November 4th, he told his supporters that ‘we have toppled a political dynasty’. A long-shot win that started with just 1% support in the polls, Mamdani’s victory reflected his successful construction of a strong multiracial coalition made up of young college-educated leftist voters, religious and immigrant families, and strong Black and Hispanic support. 

Like Trump’s 2024 victory, Mamdani’s race was won due to high voter turnout and a persistent, hands-on, highly digitised campaign. During his campaign, Mamdani was constantly photographed chatting to voters on the street and was particularly well-known—perhaps even infamous—for his TikTok presence. His style contrasted starkly from that of his opponent Andrew Cuomo, who amassed millions in funding from the wealthy and boasted endorsements from major figures in the Democratic Party, such as Bill Clinton and Michael Bloomberg. Lacking the same financial support from the establishment, Mamdani deployed over 100,000 volunteer canvassers who knocked on doors in outer boroughs of New York City. These neighborhoods in the Bronx and Queens were mainly populated by immigrants whose votes had swung towards Trump by more than 20 percentage points from 2020 to 2024. These residents ended up birthing an army of Mamdani’s biggest supporters, catapulting him to victory. ‘We will fight for you’, he promised them, ‘because we are you’. 

Largely criticized for his socioeconomic disconnect from his supporters, Trump made an effort to win over his working-class voter base with campaign tactics like serving fries at McDonald’s and consistently posting unfiltered messages on his own social media platform ‘Truth Social’. 

Both of these candidates put forth an image of themselves that hit home for voters. This perceived charisma is what draws critics and admirers alike to place them alongside populist leaders like Napoleon Bonaparte, Martin Luther King Jr., Nigel Farage, and Evo Morales—an extremely diverse bunch. In their populist appeal to ordinary people, Trump and Mamdani have both expertly employed simple messaging and idealist rhetoric. Trump’s signature phrase ‘Make America Great Again’ describes in just four short words how he plans to run the country, and in most of his speeches he reiterates his main aims: immigration crackdown, recentering the American economy, and ridding the country of ‘woke’ ideology. When so much of the American populace feels overworked, marginalized, and unable to engage in elitist politics, this straightforward messaging proves extremely effective. Mamdani uses these techniques as well, repeating the three main pillars of his plan for the city: ‘Together, New York, we’re going to freeze the rent. Together, New York, we’re going to make buses fast and free. Together, New York, we’re going to deliver universal childcare’. Mamdani has criticized the Democratic party, including 2024 presidential candidate Kamala Harris, for canvassing people on generalities, maintaining that people want ‘a relentless focus on an economic agenda’. This is what Trump, and later Mamdani, could offer people. Let’s not forget that, though their proposed economic policies are essentially foils of each other, a portion of their voters were the same. 

It may feel ridiculous to draw comparisons between a candidate touting democratic socialism and a president who couldn’t be more fearful of it. What this side-by-side analysis reveals is that people are more desperate than ever for strong leadership, simple messaging, and economic prosperity. What the Guardian describes as Mamdani’s ‘odds-defying’, ‘convention-shattering’ victory could easily double as a headline from Trump’s 2016 win. Trump’s conventional Republican predecessors, though, might not have been able to beat Hillary Clinton. As Mamdani points out, the Democratic Party has, for too long, ‘bowed at the altar of caution’ and ‘have paid a mighty price’. Working people can no longer recognize themselves in the parties of the center, brimming with elites and rife with intellectual rhetoric directed from affluent college graduates towards their peers in a gilded echo chamber. At first, many turned towards the far right. Now, some of the same people are beginning to find the hope and idealism that sends them to the ballot box on the left as well.

Zohran Mamdani has consistently been critiqued as being ‘too far left’ to appeal to voters outside of the extremely liberal New York City. However, the far-right has pushed its way into circles and communities it has never broached before. We might be seeing the left do the same, and fighting fire with fire looks like the only clear path to defeating their opponents. 

As the political elite squabble over ideology and policy, overworked, angry, and fearful people will continue to vote in the name of hope, clinging onto anyone they feel will fight tooth-and-nail for their survival. In the battle for their loyalty, it is anyone’s game.