New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, appeared to distance herself from NYC’s Democratic Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani as several candidates he backed secured victories in Tuesday night’s Democratic primary elections, expanding his influence within the party.
“Some of the candidates that he has supported are individuals who do not understand the politics of New York City, the cultural differences from district to district, who have not been part of the history and the struggle of some of these districts, and are relatively new to the body politic,” James told CNN following the results.
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James famously and successfully prosecuted President Donald Trump on financial fraud charges, even though several bank executives Trump has done business with testified that he paid back every dime he owed.
During her interview, James also said that she and fellow Democratic leaders are “disappointed” in Mamdani.
“[Black and Hispanic voters] don’t like the trick the DSA is trying to pull in Harlem — using the forces of gentrification to try to supplant our agenda and subvert our priorities,” one Democratic political operative told the New York Post.
“Abolishing the police and releasing every prisoner, even rapists and murderers, isn’t progressive. It’s nuts,” the source continued.
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“It isn’t people with a doorman who have the most to lose; we know it’s us, people of color, who are going to suffer most from the DSA’s reckless agenda,” the source added.
The Democratic political divide described by party strategists was reflected in Tuesday’s primary results across New York, where candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America generally performed well in higher-income, highly educated neighborhoods, while establishment Democrats found stronger support in many working-class communities.
In New York’s 13th Congressional District, Mamdani-endorsed graduate student Darializa Avila Chevalier defeated incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat in the Democratic primary.
According to demographic analysis by The New York Times, Espaillat ran strongest in lower-income and predominantly Black precincts, while Chevalier carried neighborhoods with higher incomes, larger shares of college graduates and younger voters.
The newspaper also noted that affluent, college-educated young adults in New York City are more likely than the general population to have moved to the city from elsewhere in the United States.
Letitia James faults Mamdani for ‘blowing up’ Democratic Party https://t.co/R1mvxmn8oR
— Charles Schmalzel (@CharlesSch69743) June 26, 2026
Overall, nine Democratic incumbents—including seven state legislators and two members of Congress—were defeated in Tuesday’s primaries, underscoring the growing influence of anti-establishment candidates aligned with Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America, Fox News reported.
All three congressional candidates endorsed by Mamdani ahead of Tuesday’s Democratic primaries won their races.
Two unseated incumbent members of Congress, while the third defeated the preferred successor to a retiring congresswoman.
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Following the results, Mamdani pointed to the victories as evidence of his growing political influence, highlighting the outcomes as a significant shift within the Democratic Party.
“We are showing that last June, a year ago tomorrow, was not an anomaly,” the mayor said Tuesday night. “It was not the end. It was the beginning.”
James acknowledged that many voters are dissatisfied with the current direction of the Democratic Party but cautioned that the growing influence of Mamdani’s movement could complicate the party’s electoral prospects by deepening internal divisions.
In an interview with The New York Times, James said she supports reaching “some sort of understanding” with the party’s socialist wing in an effort to ease tensions and preserve party unity.
“All of us are a little frustrated with the Democratic Party. But you don’t blow it up,” she said. “That’s what MAGA has done.”
In fact, Republican voters flocked to Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda, ‘blowing up’ the globalist RINO tendencies of the party that often mirrored those of Democrats before the socialists began taking control.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
