Israel-BDS Controversy

Zohran Mamdani Leads NYC Mayor Race Despite Israel-BDS Controversy: Inside the Campaign

The Campaign Landscape: Ideologically Pure  Socialist Takes Early Lead

Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old Democratic Socialist and New York State Assemblyman from Queens, has emerged from relative obscurity to become the frontrunner in the 2025 mayoral race for New York City. According to early returns, he led with about 43.5% of first-choice votes to former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 36.3% in the ranked-choice system.

His campaign centers on affordable housing, transit expansion, and taxing the wealthy–and a bold foreign policy profile that has put his stance on Israel and Palestine at the center of both controversy and unexpected voter support.

The Foreign Policy Flashpoint: Israel, BDS, and the Jewish Community

Mamdani’s position on Israel and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement has become a defining axis of the campaign.

Support for BDS and Past Activism

In 2020, Mamdani publicly encouraged progressive activists to demand local candidates embrace a boycott of Israel. His earlier activism included urging the co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s to stop selling ice cream in Israeli settlements, a claim that resurfaced during the campaign.

Dating back to his college days at Bowdoin, Mamdani has expressed “unabashed” support for BDS, co-founding the school’s Students for Justice in Palestine chapter and writing in 2014 that a boycott aims to “put pressure on Israeli institutions to end the oppressive occupation” of Palestine.

In a 2021 interview that recently resurfaced, Mamdani described his “unabashed commitment” to BDS and called Israel’s policies “occupation and apartheid.” However, as his mayoral ambitions crystallized, his campaign has taken pains to dial back explicitly radical language–though he has not recanted key positions.

Recognition of Israel and Language of Statehood

A pivotal moment came when Mamdani refused to endorse Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, insisting instead it must be a state with equal rights for all. That remark triggered broad condemnation from Jewish communal leaders, including the New York Board of Rabbis.

On television, he reiterated: “Yes, like all nations, I believe it [Israel] has a right to exist–and a responsibility to uphold international law.”

Outreach Efforts and Unexpected Support Among Young Jewish Voters

Despite backlash, Mamdani has made outreach efforts to the Jewish community. He conducted a Yiddish language interview with the Hasidic newspaper Der Blatt and made overtures to Orthodox voters. On the campaign trail, Mamdani has stated he wants to combat hate crimes across New York City, including those targeting Jews, and appeared on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” claiming the city faces a “crisis of antisemitism” and proposing a Department of Community Safety focusing on anti-hate programming.

Surprisingly, some internal polling shared with his staff shows his support among younger Jewish voters under 44 is higher than expected–a finding at odds with the conventional wisdom of uniformly hostile Jewish attitudes toward him. According to Mondoweiss, two out of three young Jews are expected to vote for Mamdani, and overall, a substantial minority (43 percent) of Jews will support him.

Inside the Campaign Headquarters: Strategy and Messaging Tensions

Our reporting included off-the-record interviews with two senior figures inside Mamdani’s campaign: Aide 1 (Communications Director) and Aide 2 (Policy Lead). They permitted attribution by role only.

Messaging Tension Between Justice and Governance

Aide 1 said: “We believe New Yorkers are tired of seeing foreign policy treated as separate from local justice. Zohran sees solidarity with Palestinians as part of the same moral logic as solidarity with renters and transit riders.”

Aide 2 added: “Look, we know words matter. The challenge is: how do you govern a city of 8.5 million while making systemic critique of U.S. and Israeli foreign policy? That tension is real inside the campaign.”

They described internal briefings fashioned around “language risk”–especially after public instances where Mamdani declined to condemn the protest slogan “Globalize the Intifada.” The campaign is tracking media frames closely and adapting talking points accordingly.

Data Behind the Scenes: Jewish Voter Polling

According to data shared by campaign staff, polling among Jewish voters reveals two surprising trends:

• Support among younger Jewish voters (under 35) is nearly on par with the general electorate’s support for Mamdani.
• The biggest drop-off within the Jewish vote is not over Israel policy, they say, but over perceptions of his “inexperience” in running city government.

The staff shared an internal memo dated July 15, 2025, showing that when asked “Would you consider voting for Mamdani?” among Jewish respondents, approximately 28% said yes (down from 35% among the general electorate), but 47% of Jewish under-44 respondents said they were open to him–a gap the campaign sees as an opportunity.

Coalition Complexity: Balancing Progressive and Moderate Constituencies

The campaign is balancing relationships with progressive allies (who expect bold language on Palestine) and institutions and communities (Jewish, immigrant, moderate) wary of anti-Israel rhetoric. The campaign’s strategy memo emphasizes: “We must remain unequivocal on combating antisemitism while articulating critique of foreign policy.”

In a recent interview with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Mamdani acknowledged skepticism: “I don’t begrudge folks who are skeptical of me, especially with tens of millions of dollars having been spent against me with the intent to do just that, but I hope to prove that I am someone to build a relationship with, not one to fear.” He stated his priority as mayor would be “to deliver on the affordability agenda I ran on: freezing the rent, universal childcare, and fast and free buses.”

On divestment, Mamdani said he supports Brad Lander’s approach “to end the practice of purchasing Israel bonds in our pension funds, which we do not do for any other nation.”

What a Mamdani Mayoralty Could Look Like

If elected, Mamdani’s foreign policy positions will become practical governance issues in New York City.

Contracting and Procurement Implications

One possibility: review of procurement contracts involving Israeli-linked companies or military technology firms. Mamdani’s policy platform includes a clause: “We will refuse to buy goods or services from companies complicit in violations of international law.” Critics say this could create diplomatic and business headaches–especially given New York’s extensive institutional ties to Israel.

The “Not On Our Dime” Act: Targeting Settlement Funding

In May 2023, Mamdani introduced landmark legislation dubbed the “Not on our dime!: Ending New York Funding of Israeli Settler Violence Act”, which would give the state attorney general authority to dissolve nonprofit organizations found using tax-deductible donations to support Israeli West Bank settlements.

The bill, which he reintroduced in 2025 with expanded scope, would allow recovery of a civil penalty of at least $1 million for knowingly funding settlement activity. According to The Nation, New York-based charities send around $60 million annually to organizations that assist Israeli settlement activity deemed illegal by the international community.

At a July 2023 rally in Herald Square, Mamdani led the crowd in chanting “Not on our dime!” and declared: “What we are calling for is an end to our complicity as New Yorkers.” The legislation faced swift condemnation from Democratic leadership, with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins both promising the bill would never come to a vote.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez backs the legislation, which is supported by a coalition including the Center for Constitutional Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace, and the Democratic Socialists of America. However, 25 state lawmakers signed a letter condemning it as “a ploy to demonize Jewish charities with connections to Israel.”

This puts Mamdani in direct conflict with New York State Executive Order 157, signed by then-Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2016, which directs state entities to divest from organizations supporting BDS and declares: “If you boycott Israel, New York will boycott you.”

Sister-City and Education Relationships

Another area: CUNY and New York public schools’ Jewish-Israeli study programs. Staff insiders say back-channel memos are being drawn up anticipating pushback from universities and philanthropic foundations if pressure is applied to end educational linkups with Israel.

During a June PIX11 mayoral forum, Mamdani said he would discontinue a council created by Eric Adams to strengthen economic ties between the U.S. and Israel. Mamdani also said he does not believe visiting Israel is crucial to representing Jewish constituents, breaking with a tradition where every NYC mayor since 1948 has visited Israel. “Even if I wanted to go to Israel as NYC mayor, Israel probably wouldn’t let me,” Mamdani said, adding that one need not visit Israel to stand up for Jewish New Yorkers.

More controversially, Mamdani has said he would seek to arrest Prime Minister Netanyahu as a war criminal if he came to New York, and takes positions that include supporting BDS, saying Israel committed genocide in Gaza, and pledging to arrest Netanyahu for war crimes.

Definition and Response to Antisemitism

Because Mamdani has rejected the full definition of antisemitism adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), his administration would likely introduce an alternate definition emphasizing critique of states as distinct from hatred of peoples. Opponents fear that could weaken municipal ability to track antisemitic hate incidents; supporters say it could better distinguish legitimate political speech.

Adding to the controversy, Mamdani declined to co-sponsor Assembly resolutions in 2025 recognizing Israel’s 77th anniversary and commemorating the Holocaust. Only five lawmakers in the 150-member Assembly did not sign at least one of the resolutions–Mamdani refused to sign both. His spokesperson explained he stopped co-sponsoring any resolutions during his mayoral campaign, though critics noted he also didn’t co-sponsor the 2023 and 2024 Holocaust resolutions before launching his campaign.

Further complicating matters, Mamdani compared “Globalize the Intifada” to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, prompting the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to condemn the comparison as “outrageous and especially offensive to survivors.”

The Broader Implications: Generational Shift in Democratic Politics

Mamdani’s candidacy represents more than a single city’s race–it signals a broader realignment inside the Democratic Party and U.S. urban politics.

• The generational shift: Pew Research shows Americans under 35 are nearly twice as likely to sympathize with Palestinians than those over 55.
• The urban insurgent model: His campaign reflects the insurgent progressive wave that challenges establishment Democrats–but with a twist on foreign policy, not just domestic issues.
• Identity politics in transition: For decades, U.S. Jewish voters were a stable Democratic cohort aligned with pro-Israel policy. Mamdani’s rise suggests deep fractures in that alignment.

Risks and Obstacles Ahead

Economic Concerns Over BDS Implementation

A new study from the United States-Israel Business Alliance revealed that 590 Israeli-founded companies directly created 27,471 jobs in New York City in 2024 and indirectly created over 50,000 jobs, generating $8.1 billion in earnings and adding $12.4 billion in value to the city’s economy. One Israeli tech CEO told the New York Post that a Mamdani administration would make him think twice about investing in the city.

Messaging Missteps

Aide 2 confesses: “Every phrase about Gaza or BDS gets dissected like it’s nuclear code.” Even a single off-hand line could alienate key voters or donors. When asked whether he would continue to support BDS as mayor, Mamdani gave an evasive response, explaining his support for “non-violent movements” without clearly stating whether he would implement boycotts.

Coalition Fragility

While younger Jewish support is growing, the Haredi and Orthodox vote remains firmly opposed: a polling figure of 0% among one Orthodox bloc was reported in a recent survey.

Some Jewish Democrats in Congress, including Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, have condemned Mamdani for his anti-Israel stances. A survey found that half of New York voters said they were less likely to vote for Mamdani after learning of his BDS position and refusal to condemn “globalize the intifada.”

However, Rep. Jamie Raskin defended Mamdani, telling The Hill: “Our position is we’ve got to globalize human rights and peace and security for every nation and every people.” Notably, Jewish pro-Israel politicians such as Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Jerry Nadler have both praised Mamdani since his primary win.

Governance Reality Check

His platform’s expansive promises (free bus rides, rent freeze, grocery stores) might face fiscal constraints. Some union leaders interviewed for this story privately expressed concern that foreign policy drama could distract from nuts-and-bolts city issues.

Conclusion: Rhetoric Meets Reality in America’s Largest City

Zohran Mamdani has turned what once was a disqualifier–his aggressive critique of Israel and support for BDS–into an asset in a campaign built on shaking up the status quo. But the very features that make him compelling also make him volatile. As one Jewish leader told The Guardian: “He’s become a vehicle for our tensions.”

In governing one of the most complex cities in the world, rhetoric meets reality. Can Mamdani channel his insurgent energy into administrative competence while carrying the burdens of diaspora politics, foreign policy symbolism, and a changing electoral base? The answer will reverberate far beyond New York City.

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Disclaimer: This article is the result of a human collaboration between a tenured professor of political science and a philosophy major turned dairy farmer. It is entirely crafted by sentient beings–no artificial intelligence was used in its writing or editorial process.