Mamdani says its time to bring this chapter to a close after Graham Platner campaign collapse
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani declined to comment on whether the collapse of former Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner’s campaign reflects a broader problem within the progressive movement, instead saying in an interview published Thursday that it was time to “bring this chapter to a close.”During an interview with NY1’s Errol Lewis, the host noted that Platner’s downfall had sparked a national conversation about whether progressives had moved too quickly to embrace a candidate who was “simply unfit” for office.“There’s a national discussion that this has triggered about whether or not the push by some progressives to sort of push the traditional mainstream Democrats aside … they came up with a candidate who was simply unfit or not prepared for the responsibility of making it all the way through the campaign,” Lewis said before asking whether that was an “occupational danger for progressives.”Rather than answer the broader question about the progressive movement, Mamdani pivoted back to Platner’s campaign.“I think my focus right now is how do we ensure that we bring this chapter to a close and then start to write a new chapter,” Mamdani said.“And I think I trust the voters of Maine to point us in the right direction.” This is not the first time that Mamdani was asked to weigh in on the race in Maine.
The New York City mayor said during a news conference on Tuesday, prior to the suspension of Platner’s campaign, that he believed it was “time for him to drop out of the race.”During the interview, Mamdani also suggested he has no plans to wade into elections beyond New York, saying, “The endorsements I’ve made have all been right here in New York City.”The mayor previously endorsed far-left congressional candidates Claire Valdez, Brad Lander and Darializa Avila Chevalier, all of whom won their respective races last month.While Mamdani never endorsed Platner, their campaigns shared a connection in Morris ...