Ep 78: On Zohran Mamdani's NYC Mayoral Election

On this episode of SPS, we talk about all things Mamdani -- the new DSA mayor of New York City. Your host Pamela N. sits down with former co-host Laurie R., Platypus president Erin H., and our New York member Benjamin K. -- one of the organizers of the recent Platypus Mamdani panel in NYC. We give our impressions of the Oval Office press conference, after the first Trump and Mamdani meeting, and we digest the discussion by the Left on Mamdani captured in our NYC Mamdani panel. We discuss the history of Sewer Socialism, the Second International, and the Millennial Left's journey towards a "new New Deal." The episode features clips from the panel recording to anchor the conversation for our listeners. The edited transcript of that panel has been published on the Platypus Review's most recent issue, linked below. We encourage our listeners to take a read! Links - Platypus Panel (NYU): "Whither socialism? Mamdani and the Left," with Mitchel Cohen, Melvyn Dubofsky, Daniel Lazare, and Sebastian LM (September 26, 2025, published Nov. 2025) Edited Transcript: https://platypus1917.org/2025/11/01/whither-socialism-mamdani-and-the-left/ Video recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRmIkNQB4ME - Mamdani Victory Speech (Nov. 2025) https://youtu.be/_650kn3RpmI?si=IfgevMLTzgJEpDSh - Michael Kinnucan, "How Zohran Mamdani Triumphed Over a Decrepit Establishment" (Nov. 2025) https://jacobin.com/2025/11/mamdani-dsa-democrats-cuomo-socialists - Derek Thompson, "'What Speaks to Me About Abundance': My Full Interview With Zohran Mamdani" (Jun. 2025) https://www.derekthompson.org/p/what-speaks-to-me-about-abundance - "Socialism in one City?" Independent Labor Club of New York event (Sept. 2025) https://x.com/ILCofNYC/status/1964339829446946907?s=20 - "Socialism in Our Time: A Jacobin Conference" (Sept. 2025) https://www.eventbrite.com/e/socialism-in-our-time-a-jacobin-conference-tickets-1485130077039 - Jacobin obituary for David Dinkins, “What David Dinkins Taught Us" (Nov. 2020) https://jacobin.com/2020/11/david-dinkins-mayor-new-york-city-obituary - Daniel Lazare, "Cheering on Trump" (Jan. 2025) http://forum.permanent-revolution.org/2025/01/cheering-on-trump.html - Mamdani Meet the Press Interview (Nov. 23, 2025) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YNwdXW64WA