What Next | Zohran Mamdani’s Former Boss Weighs In

Slate News

Slate Podcasts

News, News Commentary, Politics

4.6 • 6K Ratings

🗓️ 26 June 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

How Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani upset the better-connected, better-funded, better-known candidate in New York’s Democratic mayoral primary—and how he might actually govern if he makes it into office. Guest: Ross Barkan, contributing writer at the New York Times Magazine, New York Magazine columnist, and Editor-in-Chief of The Metropolitan Review. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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1:01.2	Long before a socialist named Zoran Mamdani trounced former governor, Andrew Cuomo, to become New York City's
1:12.9	Democratic nominee for mayor, long before anyone knew Mamdani was going to run at all. Journalist
1:19.6	Ross Barkan, he knew.
1:26.0	Ross knew because Zoran Mamdani was calling him.
1:30.3	He thought he could be viable.
1:34.3	I don't think either of us thought he would necessarily shoot to the top and win.
1:40.3	I mean, not thinking about that necessarily at the beginning, but there was an opening there.
1:45.3	He understood it.
1:46.3	I understood it.
	...

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