European left-wing politicians are crossing the Atlantic to study a campaign model they see as a blueprint for revival — the campaign of New York Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist whose grassroots machine has captured attention far beyond his Queens district.
According to a Politico Europe report on Monday, far-left delegations from France, Germany and the U.K. visited New York this week to observe Mamdani’s operation firsthand. Among them were the deputy leader of the U.K. Green Party; a parliamentary officer for Germany’s Left (Die Linke) Party; as well as a French member of the European Parliament, with the goal of translating what they see as a successful campaign into more victories for Europe’s hard-left parties.
Alan Mendoza, executive director of the London-based Henry Jackson Society, told Fox News Digital, ‘Nobody would have thought New York would succumb to this five years ago. But there are certain conditions — a problematic economy, cost-of-living issues, and weak opposition — that make it fertile ground. Those conditions certainly exist in many European cities, so you can see an immediate crossover.’
Mendoza added, ‘It’s no surprise they’re coming to study Mamdani’s campaign,’ he said. ‘It looks like it’s going to be a very successful one, and the fact that somebody with his views and policies looks like they’re about to be elected as mayor of one of the most famous cities in the world is a boon to all those who share his politics internationally.’
Mendoza described Mamdani as a ‘trailblazer’ for hard-left movements that have often struggled to win major offices in Western democracies. ‘He’s bringing victory where there has always previously been defeat for politicians of the far left,’ he said. ‘His tactics, his style, his pronouncements — his form of forging a governing coalition, are going to be of keen interest to similar hard leftists around the world.’
In New York, Mamdani has built his base through neighborhood-level activism, which European politicians see as a path to reenergize voters. The former leader of the U.K.’s Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, who now leads the upstart Your Party, said on social media that he and his team phone banked for Mamdani.
Corbyn shared the phone-banking link which leads a website organized by the Democratic Socialists of America’s NYC chapter which is urging volunteers to mobilize voters for Mamdani.
Mendoza warned that replicating Mamdani’s ideological platform could deepen polarization. ‘Europe is already more statist and more left-wing as a rule than America anyway,’ he said. ‘So if he can win in New York, why can’t a hard leftist win in Europe? The question is whether those policies would actually work — and history shows they don’t.’
Mendoza dismissed identity as a driving factor behind Mamdani’s success, despite debates over his immigrant background. ‘It’s not an ethnicity question,’ he said. ‘It’s a question of what his ideology is — and that can be shared by people whether they’re born in a country or not.’
Fox News’ Emma Bussey contributed to this report.