Astead Herndon

Someone who had a previous rap career and has thought about music videos and things like that.

And he was really coming into this race thinking, how do I make sure I'm not just creating a field organization, but a digital organization?

It is undeniable that Andrew Cuomo was able to drive up votes, particularly among the kind of Republican or more conservative strongholds in New York City, in the Orthodox community.

It's true that among kind of younger Jewish voters, particularly in places like Brooklyn, there were a lot of voters who saw no problem with their own faith and identity and voting for Zohar Mamdani.

And so it's a little, I think, more nuanced than just saying, you know, are there pockets of New York that have found Mamdani not willing to stand up for their community?

Certainly.

And you have seen that kind of pushback.

But he has made a point.

And I think even in his speech last night, he made a point to say, you know, I look forward to standing with Jewish New Yorkers to stand up against anti-Semitism.

A lot of kind of more establishment corporate Democrats are currently dealing with right now the balance between winning and values.

But there's been a lot of kind of left progressive folks who have prioritized values over winning.

And what Mondani says is that that –

is a mistake.

He would say, particularly for the role of mayor, it's not one that rewards rigidity.

And so you have to sort of compromise.

And so after the primary, Mamdani and his campaign made a concerted effort to show that.

And so this is mostly happening in private.

He is following up with a lot of business leaders.

He is reaching out to members of the tech community.

And he was holding kind of small get-to-know-you sessions, even at his campaign,