MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Following New York's primary Tuesday night, the Democratic Party is facing questions about its future and just how far left it will go after the victories of two democratic socialist candidates in congressional primaries.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
And less than a year after taking office, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani swept the first major test of his political influence within the city, thanks to primary wins by candidates he backed.
MARTIN: Reporter Steve Kastenbaum was following last night's result, and he's with us now for an early morning after a late night. Thanks, Steve.
STEVE KASTENBAUM: Oh, my pleasure. Thank you.
MARTIN: So how did the night turn out for Mamdani and his slate of Democratic candidates?
KASTENBAUM: Well, the mayor really flexed his muscle in this election, and it paid off in a very big way. All three candidates he backed won their primary races. And in one of the biggest upsets last night, five-term Democratic Congressman Adriano Espaillat went down in a narrow loss to democratic socialist Darializa Avila Chevalier. Mayor Mamdani spoke at her election-night party after the Associated Press called the race.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
ZOHRAN MAMDANI: And it is because you poured your hearts into this, because you poured your hopes into this, that we are showing there is a new path for politics in our city and in our country.
KASTENBAUM: Espaillat chairs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. He sits on the very powerful Appropriations Committee. This is a huge loss for the Democratic establishment.
MARTIN: And what about these primary winners? How did those who are aligned with Mamdani - how did they talk about their victory?
KASTENBAUM: Well, they were celebrating, of course. Chevalier used her victory to fire a shot at that Democratic power structure.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
DARIALIZA AVILA CHEVALIER: Today, we make it clear - the politics of the past ends today.
(CHEERING)
KASTENBAUM: Mamdani also stumped heavily for Claire Valdez. She's a state assembly member. She was declared the winner in Brooklyn's 7th Congressional District. That seat is being vacated by retiring Representative Nydia Velazquez, the first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress. She backed another candidate, Antonio Reynoso. Valdez is also with the DSA, the Democratic Socialists of America. The candidates backed by Mamdani were highly critical of Israeli actions in Gaza. That includes former New York City comptroller Brad Lander. He's a close friend of the mayor, and he had a big win over incumbent Congressman Dan Goldman. All of these districts are heavily Democratic, so all three will likely go on to D.C.
MARTIN: OK. Steve, to your point, though, these primaries happen in what are considered safe blue districts in New York City. So how do these wins fit into the broader aim of the Democratic effort to retake the House in November?
KASTENBAUM: Well, Mayor Mamdani and his followers are arguing that this energizes young voters, and they think it could help with voter turnout in the fall. They think that their anti-corruption, anti-billionaire, pro-affordability message resonates with a broad range of Americans. Centrist Democrats - they have their concerns. They need to flip seats in swing districts to win over moderate Republicans to do that, and they worry that the move further to the left could hurt that effort. The Republican Party could use socialist wins to argue that Dems moving the country too far to the left.
MARTIN: There's a toss-up race left in New York suburbs. Democrats hoped to flip a seat held by Republican Representative Mike Lawler. How'd that turn out?
KASTENBAUM: Well, Cait Conley, an Army combat vet and a former member of the Biden administration, won that race. Beat her close opponent by a wide margin. Democrats expected to pour a lot of money into that race to defeat Lawler. He's trying to distance himself from President Trump, but the president campaigned for him at a rally in his district.
MARTIN: That is reporter Steve Kastenbaum in New York. Steve, thank you.
KASTENBAUM: My pleasure. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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