The socialist empire state of mind

People are freaking out, and if you’ve turned on Fox News or spoken to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in the last few days, you’d know why. New York City Democrats chose Zohran Mamdani for their nominee for mayor over disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo.

What could be pissing them off? Is it his dashing smile or bromance with NYC Comptroller Brad Lander? His viral videos that the geriatric class of Dem leadership can’t seem to pull off? Or is it because he ran, and won, on a campaign taking on the corporate establishment?

As our Interim Executive Director, Ryan O'Donnell, wrote on DFP Insights:

“Voters were, and continue to be, largely dissatisfied with the status quo. Mamdani’s campaign showcased how Democrats can reach disaffected voters by acknowledging our political and economic systems are broken and demonstrating that they will actually fight to help fix them.

By running on economic populism — from building affordable housing and lowering everyday costs to supporting workers and taking on corporate power — Democrats can show voters that they are not just hearing people’s concerns but actively offering bold solutions that will make life easier and create a more just economy.”



As we consistently found in our polling, Mamdani’s major policy planks, like fast and free buses, a rent freeze on rent-stabilized apartments, and city-owned grocery stores, were overwhelmingly popular with likely voters in New York City. A much better platform than Eric Adams’ agenda of free Turkish Airlines tickets for all.

And if Andrew Cuomo is looking for a new job, we heard that Condé Nast has a new opening?

Read the full Insights here.

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Here are some other highlights from DFP this week:

Defund the GOP

What do Planned Parenthood and the Tiny Chef have in common? They’ve both been devastatingly defunded this week by leaders who want to destroy anything good in this world (that Tiny Chef video hit us hard, guys). 

This week, the Supreme Court ruled that Medicaid patients could not sue South Carolina over its efforts to deny Planned Parenthood’s Medicaid funding. And in the One Big Butt-Ugly Bill, Republicans have inserted several provisions to restrict abortion access and eliminate federal funding for Planned Parenthood. 

When asked whether Congress should eliminate federal funding for Planned Parenthood, a majority of voters (58%) say it should not, while 32% say it should.



If we want to debate something, let’s all go back to debating Sabrina Carpenter’s new album cover or whether to bring back Jeremiah on Love Island. Because voters do not want to see Planned Parenthood defunded, and access to reproductive health care should not be a political question.

Read the full poll here.


E-P-KI-YAY

There are some things in this world that we should all agree are universally good or bad. Hanging out by the pool this summer with a book? Great. It being 100 degrees and humid on the East Coast? Horrible. Lorde releasing new music? We love it. Benson Boone releasing new music? Not so much.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)? Amazing. Mercury and carbon dioxide pollution? Bad, bad, bad. 

Unfortunately, it seems like the brain worms have infected the entire Trump team at this point, because earlier this month, the Trump administration announced plans to roll back current EPA limits on fossil fuel plant emissions.

When asked whether they think the EPA’s current limits on power plant pollution should be kept in place or repealed, a strong majority of voters say they think limits on mercury (62%) and carbon dioxide pollution (59%) should be kept in place.



Idk, if we were a president with horrendous approval numbers, we simply would not come out consistently in favor of polluting the air. But that’s just us!

Read the full poll here.

DFP In The News

Politico: ‘Big mistakes': Pollsters face recriminations for missing the Mamdani surge

Heatmap: Majority of North Carolina Voters Want to Keep the IRA, Poll Finds

Truthout: Mamdani Is Showing Dems Don’t Have to Chase Voter Opinion — They Can Shape It

Forbes: Why New Yorkers Voted For Public Grocery Stores, Explained

Meme of the Week