How Maya Handa's campaign led to Zohran Mamdani's historic victory in New York City
Handa, a young progressive operative on Mamdani’s team, took over as campaign manager from Elise Bisgaard-Church in July.
Zohran Mamdani went from being a little-known assemblyman to a global household name with his mayoral campaign. Mamdani and his team's hard work paid off with his historic win in the NYC mayoral elections on November 4 where he defeated former governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa.
Among the various names, Maya Handa, Mamdani's campaign manager, is now being recognised globally for her efforts as campaign manager which put Mamdani on the map.
Handa, a young progressive operative on Mamdani’s team, took over as campaign manager from Elise Bisgaard-Church after the 34-year-old moved into the role of chief advisor.
Mamdani’s campaign was the latest in a series of progressive efforts Handa has managed. Before this, she ran State Senator Zellnor Myrie’s mayoral bid and had previously worked with Mamdani during his tenure in the New York State Assembly.
Also Read | Meet Mamdani’s campaign team that reached out to millions of New Yorkers
As per an NYT report, Handa has a strong record of managing progressive campaigns. CNN also noted her collaboration with the Working Families Party, a key progressive force in New York City politics.
Mamdani's all-inclusive campaign
You didn’t need to be in New York, or even in the United States, to know that Zohran Mamdani was running for mayor.
With his campaign videos in languages ranging from Bengali, Arabic to Spanish, the 34-year-old assemblyman was all over social media platforms, especially Instagram, X and TikTok.
Furthermore, Mamdani was part of all the viral Gen-Z street interviews, parades and even Halloween raves as he made an attempt to connect with the youth of New York and get more voters.
Also Read | Colour palette to brand identity: How Rama Duwaji's ‘silent’ support steered Zohran Mamdani's campaign
As per NYT, with his campaign team pushing Zohran everywhere across New York, the efforts paid off as more than two million New Yorkers cast their ballots.
This number is nearly double the 1.1 million who voted in the previous mayoral elections. In the boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan, voter participation neared presidential election levels.
Furthermore, Mamdani's campaign also managed to turn out his previous weaknesses in working-class Black and Latino neighbourhoods.
Most importantly, all throughout his campaign, Mamdani stayed focused on his objectives as mayor - rent freezes, free childcare and affordable living - which helped him strengthen his connect with middle and working class families across NYC.
Historic win for Mamdani
Alas, the team's planning led to a historic night for Mamdani. With his win, Zohran is now the first Muslim, South Asian mayor of New York City. Furthermore, he is also the youngest mayor elected by the city in over a 100 years.
The last was John Purroy Mitchel, who was also known as the “Boy Mayor,” and elected in 1913.
Also Read | Muslim, Indian-origin: Zohran Mamdani New York win a landmark in city’s history
"To my campaign team, who believed when no one else did and who took an electoral project and turned it into so much more: I will never be able to express the depth of my gratitude. You can sleep now," said Mamdani in his speech.
Zohran Mamdani will assume office as the mayor of New York City on January 1, 2026. He will be replacing incumbent mayor Eric Adams, who had dropped out from the rave earlier this year but remained on the ballot.
