I (like many of you, I suspect) have spent the last week becoming deeply obsessed with Zohran Mamdani, the recent winner of New York City’s mayoral primary.
For those not deep in the weeds of American politics, he beat out establishment candidate (and former NY Governor) Andrew Cuomo to become the Democratic candidate for mayor. And because NYC is a Democratic stronghold - even accounting for some Trump gains in 2024 - he will now be the favourite to win on November 4.
It’s hard to overstate how remarkable this victory is. Cuomo spent around $25 million across the campaign, flooding the city with ads that painted his opponent as a “radical” and “dangerous”. It was a textbook political campaign: raise money, test a message, run ads (mostly on TV).
Focussed instead on vertical video and a truly digital first approach, Mamdani proved, above all, that attention can no longer just be bought, it has to be earned.
So let’s break down what we can learn from his campaign…
First and foremost, Mamdani won because he is a uniquely talented candidate. Go watch him in this debate or in this video. No social media strategy or well shot ad can make up for the fact that the guy is just an incredible communicator.
Lesson 1: product matters
If what you are selling, talking about, or asking people to vote for isn’t compelling? You’re already pushing sh*t uphill.
Before you even think about ‘marketing’, figure out what you’re actually trying to do. How does it solve a problem for your audience? How does it benefit your theory of change? If you can’t answer those questions, your audience won’t be able to either.
Lesson 2: find your story (and tell it over and over again)
Across Mamdani’s campaign, every piece of content, every speech, every policy told the same story.
Dan Pfeiffer put it well on Pod Save America last week when he said that the political divide is no longer left and right but inside and outside. Mamdani’s campaign made the ‘establishment’ the enemy, criticising the way corruption and excess had crippled politicians’ ability to deliver for everyday Americans.
By having a clearly defined core narrative, they were able to create content that knew exactly who it was talking to - and who it was against.
My favourite example? The subway take - a masterclass in political positioning.
Lesson 3: the message is in the detail
Part of Mamdani’s criticism of the ‘establishment’ is that they aren’t actually interested in policy making. Talking about the details of his own policies created an implicit comparison to his narrative (and political) enemy.
“But aren’t policy details boring? Don’t voters just want three word slogans?” I hear you ask…
Not necessary. Audiences are open to detail as long as it…
Tells a story (sensing a theme?) - not just detail for details sake. Ezra Klein talked (on this podcast) about how candidates that are successful in our current attention environment use policy to communicate rather than communicating by sharing policy. Put another way, policies are a tool of communication, not the communication itself.
Is well produced. Mamdani’s videos are just really easy to watch. They’re brilliantly scripted, beautifully edited and designed to fit seamlessly into the feeds where you’ll likely discover them. This doesn’t have to mean ‘high’ production value - content just needs to feel native to the platform where it lives.
As an example, this video has 4.3 million views and received a tonne of comments like this one…
Lesson 4: people are your best messengers
When it comes to political (and almost all) communication, people trust friends and family above all else. How does a relatively unknown candidate beat $25 million in ad spend against him? It’s not just viral videos, it’s the people sharing them.
On and offline, Mamdani created advocates: people that would champion his candidacy amongst their own networks.
What this looked like…
His campaign gave their audience the tools to push back on misinformation. Go back and watch the subway take video again. He’s not just myth busting for the audience watching the video, it’s so that they know how to respond when misinformation pops up in their lives.
They created a lot of content explicitly aimed at the South Asian community. Because he could speak to this community in a way that other campaigns couldn’t, he had a natural advantage here that his campaign made the most of. Rather than always speaking to the largest potential voting block, they prioritised building deep connection and advocacy.
The campaign felt like something people could be proudly associated with. This is where cultural influencers and partnerships really make an impact. Mamdani’s campaign expertly borrowed from the cultural capital of known creators and influencers who were already speaking to his target audience.
And finally (because you know I won’t shut up about this), his campaign didn’t rely on ‘memes’ to get online cut through. Yes, his content was very ‘internet-y’ - borrowing from tested formats - but it stopped short of jumping on short term trends for no purpose other than virality.
Go and have a scroll through his Instagram and TikTok, plus I’ve linked a few articles below if you’d like to continue down the Mamdani campaign rabbit hole.
This post from Impact breaks down some more of what worked in his campaign.
Mentioned above, but this Ezra Klein show episode was an interesting discussion on new vs old campaign methods.
Some thoughtful analysis of the campaign graphic design from Curbed.
Bonus content: this is totally not related to anything I’ve just written, but I’m obsessed with the photos from his wedding. Also - they met on Hinge? Maybe there is hope for us all.
TikTok formats, viral memes, new Instagram features, audio sounds, or emerging aesthetics: here’s what’s happening online this week
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