How a fight over antisemitism is shaping the mayoral race

Antisemitism and Israel's ongoing attacks on Gaza will remain at the center of the mayoral race as the primary approaches. Andrew Cuomo, who is the front-runner according to polls, and Mayor Eric Adams are staunch defenders of Israel who are vying for Orthodox and conservative Jewish voters — a key voting bloc for any citywide candidate. On the other end of the spectrum, Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, maintains that Israel is committing genocide and called for a permanent ceasefire. Between them, the self-described liberal Zionist Brad Lander is forcefully pushing back against opponents in the race who he says are weaponizing Jewish voters’ concerns about a spike in antisemitic hate crimes and instances of bigotry at widespread campus protests.