D.C. progressives want their own Zohran Mamdani vs. Mayor Bowser
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Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani's shock win in the New York City mayoral primary has locals buzzing: Could it happen in D.C.?
Why it matters: I declared D.C.'s progressive era over earlier this year, but Mamdani's get-it-done brand of politics and hip campaign messaging is opening a new conversation on the left.
The big picture: As Mayor Muriel Bowser considers a fourth-term bid for 2026, lefties are studying Mamdani's playbook.
- "The real question is: Does DC have the kind of charismatic, inspiring, fearless progressive leader that is willing to take on Mayor Bowser full throttle and run the kind of modern campaign Mamdani did?" wondered Scott Goldstein, a D.C. activist, in an X post.
What I'm hearing: The most talked-about name in the last 24 hours has been Janeese Lewis George, the council member who represents uptown neighborhoods like Brightwood and the Georgia Avenue corridor.
- A democratic socialist, she beat a Bowser acolyte in 2020 for the Ward 4 seat.
- Whether she wants the job is another question, but she could make a play for a Mamdani-inspired run.
At-large Council member Robert White has said he's "interested" in a Bowser rematch.
- White skews left — he won his seat with progressive backing and sounds skeptical about taxpayer dollars for RFK Stadium.
- But he's also recently voted the other way, like on Initiative 82.
Beyond them, the field gets way more speculative.
- What about former Council member Elissa Silverman, whose 2022 loss left a progressive power vacuum on the council? "I don't have plans to do that," she told me, and ditto when I asked if she would happen to run for D.C. Council.
- A wildcard: A candidate no one's talking about right now. See: A national political figure or a lesser-known politico like Erin Palmer, an advisory neighborhood commissioner who got more votes than expected in her loss to Council Chairman Phil Mendelson in 2022.
Asked about Bowser's future, the mayor's former campaign chairman, Bill Lightfoot, told me: "The mayor is focused on building the RFK site, reducing violence, improving our schools and passing a balanced budget."
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