—Mahfuzur Rahman—

Many who follow US politics think that the election of Zohran Mamdani in the recent mayoral election in New York has brought a new breath of fresh air to US politics. Zohran Mamdani is a Democrat. Or rather, a socialist democrat. In addition to the Democratic Party, he is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. In Trump’s words, a communist. Zohran Mamdani is young. Andrew Cuomo has considered him inexperienced. At thirty-four, he is the youngest mayor of New York. Mamdani is an immigrant. Born to an Indian family in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, Mamdani spent his early childhood in South Africa. He came to the US with his parents in 1998. This was only twenty-seven years ago. The Republican camp has threatened to revoke Mamdani’s citizenship. Mamdani is Muslim. His mother is the famous award-winning film director Mira Nair. Mira was born to a Hindu family in Odisha (formerly Orissa), India. Zohran’s father is an anthropologist born in Mumbai, India, to a Shia Muslim family. He has spent a significant part of his life in Tanzania and Uganda. Zohran Mamdani says he is a Muslim. His opponents have called him a jihadi, a terrorist, a liar, and Little Mohammed. They say that Mamdani’s rise will be another 9/11 in New York. Mamdani’s mixed-race identity is present in his name. The middle part of his name is African. Elon Musk deliberately mispronounced his name when he opposed him. Mamdani has responded to every criticism using clear, simple, and decent language. Then in the mayoral election on 4 November, New York voters chose Zohran Mamdani. About 50.4% of voters chose Mamdani to lead New York from the first day of the new year. His main rival was also a Democrat. Andrew Cuomo, who served as governor of New York for 10 years. Cuomo chose to run independently after failing to win the Democratic Party nomination but was endorsed by US Republican President Donald Trump and received 41.6% of the vote. Republican Party candidate Curtis Sliwa received 7.1%.

Only 40% of the 5.1 million voters turned out to vote. What if more voters had turned out! The results could have changed. But whatever the result, even if Mamdani had lost, the New York mayoral election clearly showed that Zohran Mamdani has created a new trend in US elections. Like Elon Musk, Mamdani was not born in the US. The current constitution disqualifies them from running for presidency. But nothing can be said definitively about future elections.

The New York mayoral election does not have any impact on the entire United States in general. In many places, even the politically conscious may not even be aware of the New York election. The mayoral election is confined to very basic local issues. Mamdani has emphasised housing, childcare, small businesses and transportation. National politics does not work like this. But not Mamdani as an individual, but the New York mayoral election result is pointing to the qualitative changes that are coming to politics and elections. This change is coming worldwide.

Many believe that the main drivers of this change are the young population. The younger generation, known as Gen G, is embracing global change. Bangladesh, Nepal, Indonesia, the Philippines, Botswana, Kenya, Madagascar, Peru, Morocco, Serbia – everywhere. Is this the outline of future politics? Many think yes, but many are sceptical about this as well. The younger generation wants change; it is true. It is true that those in power cannot fulfil the hopes and aspirations of the people, and thus the youth are pointing out mistakes, misrule and discrimination, and protesting and resisting. But there is no ready alternative for them. They do not know where to go next. Zohran Mamdani has brought them an answer. But such an answer is not available in all cases. Rather, in many cases, the youth have put even more ignorant snobs in power. As a result, good governance remains elusive like an El Dorado.

So where will we go? Are not the youth our future? Perhaps youth is just a vehicle behind this apparent rise. Not the main driving force. Perhaps technology is playing a bigger and decisive role here. Especially information technology and social media. Many of the young people who voted for Mamdani had cast their ballots for Donald Trump in the presidential election. How? Initially, Joe Biden and later Kamala Harris failed to connect with the youth. The way Trump used information technology and media intelligence in his election campaign, the Democrats were infants there. The youth responded to that smart campaign. They do not follow the speeches or the policies in the political arena. They do not do research. They use social media. They are easily influenced by the media influencers. Artificial intelligence is controlling our minds and hearts very easily. Since the youth use information technology more, they are more influenced. This is the trend of the world. Mamdani has been able to grasp this well. He has been able to speak their language. Instagram, Twitter/X, TikTok, YouTube – Mamdani has been vocal everywhere. He has been able to stay in touch with the youth. Mamdani’s victory is, therefore, bringing that message to politics – that communication is the key. The more politicians can become accustomed to social media and artificial intelligence – the more they become able to use those in politics, administration and governance – the more successful they will be.

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The writer is a former Bangladeshi Ambassador