A new poll found that 30 percent of New York City voters support statements about the anti-Israel boycott movement and the phrase “globalize the intifada” made by Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic party nominee for mayor.
Mamdani is a longtime supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement targeting Israel.
During his campaign for the mayoral primary, he repeatedly refused to condemn and defended the phrase “globalize the intifada.”
A survey released on Thursday by the American Pulse polling firm asked New Yorkers about Mamdani’s backing for BDS and his refusal to “condemn the phrase ‘globalize the intifada,’ which some interpret as a call to violence against Jews.”
“Does knowing this make you more or less likely to vote for Mamdani?” the survey asked. For all respondents, 30% said they are more likely to vote for Mamdani due to those statements, and 52% were less likely.
Among voters aged 18-44, 46% said they are more likely to vote for Mamdani due to his support for BDS and statements on an intifada. Women are more opposed to the rhetoric than men.
The survey’s sample size is 568, and its margin of error is ±4%.
Mamdani’s stunning win in last month’s Democratic primary leaves him as the heavy favorite to win November’s general election in the mostly Democrat city.
His record of anti-Israel activism, and his vow to adhere to those beliefs while representing the city with the world’s largest Jewish population, has forced Jewish political organizers to wrestle with their strategies going forward, and with the prospect of an anti-Zionist mayor who has said the Palestinian cause is central to his identity.
Mamdani had some Jewish support and was the second or third choice candidate for Jews, but caused repeated controversies with his rhetoric. The most notable was likely his defense of the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which many Jews view as a call to violence. His statements on the slogan came after violent attacks against Jews in Boulder, Colorado, and Washington, DC.
Pro-Israel New Yorkers have long enjoyed support from their mayor, who marches in the city’s pro-Israel parade every year. Mayor Eric Adams has repeatedly voiced support for Israel and mainstream Jews, including since the October 2023 attack on Israel and in recent months, bolstering his support in the Jewish community, despite his overall unpopularity.
After clinching the Democratic party nomination, Mamdani is considered the heavy favorite to win the November election, but other candidates have a chance. Adams officially launched his candidacy on Thursday alongside Jewish community leaders. Former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, who lost the primary to Mamdani, can also run as an independent, but has not yet committed to the race. Cuomo and Adams are both centrists, to Mamdani’s left, with a similar base. Around 13% of the city’s voters are Jews.