Progressive supporters of mayor celebrate as former city comptroller’s critical approach to Israel helps defeat incumbent congressman Dan Goldman in primary
The polls closed at 9pm in New York on Tuesday. It took less than five minutes for Brad Lander, the Zohran Mamdani-endorsed candidate, to be announced the winner in the Democratic primary in the 12th district: a dominant victory that reinforced the power of New York City’s mayor and the durability of the progressive movement.
Cheers rang out at 9.04pm at the bar where Lander held his victory party, as the former city comptroller and former mayoral candidate was declared to have easily defeated Dan Goldman, the district’s two-term incumbent, in the Democratic primary.
It was one of three big wins for Mamdani and his allies on Tuesday night, as Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier, who were also backed by the mayor, won their primaries. Lander and his two fellow victors will all be expected to win election to Congress in November, forming a fresh wave of progressive Democrats in Washington.
“What a glorious time to be a New Yorker,” Lander told the crowd at his victory party in Brooklyn.
“These past few weeks there has been a powerful energy moving through our city, a generosity of spirit, a refusal to give up even against very long odds, and a feeling of joy out in the streets, shared by every kind of New Yorker there is.”
In case it wasn’t clear what he was referencing, Lander added: “Give it up for the New York Knicks, all right.”
He continued: “Our win tonight: it belongs to those streets as well, to the people who organize there, to the people who never give up on their neighbors. It was my name on the ballot today, but tonight’s victory belongs to all of you.”
Lander was introduced by Mamdani, against whom Lander ran for New York City mayor last year. The pair eventually entered a “cross-endorsement” as they sought to use the city’s ranked-choice voting system to ensure a progressive won the election.
“Brad brings a kindness to this work. He brings a sincerity to this work. He brings a vision of politics that is more than what we’ve seen for so long,” Mamdani said, describing Lander as a “good friend”.
Mamdani’s win last year was buoyed by youth support, and the crowd at Lander’s party had a similar feel as twentysomethings toasted his victory. Indeed, for several attenders, Mamdani seemed to have served as a gateway to Lander and his campaign.
“Mamdani and Brad Lander obviously competed in the mayoral election originally, and I think after Brad [cross-]endorsed Mamdani, that’s what brought Brad to my attention, I guess,” said Ian Ryan, 24. “I think Brad’s policies are progressive and forward thinking, and he cares about the people in his district so that’s what really brings me to him.”
With 92% of the vote counted Lander was 31 points ahead of Goldman, a two-term Democratic congressman with whom Lander had clashed over their stances on Israel’s war on Gaza. Lander, who like Goldman is Jewish, is an outspoken critic of Israel, and has said the country is guilty of genocide in Gaza.
Goldman, a relatively progressive candidate, has been far less critical. He was endorsed by the pro-Israel American Israel Public Affairs Committee lobbying group – an organization which has spent millions of dollars opposing progressive Democrats, and in the mayoral election declined to endorse Mamdani, claiming he never “fully got there” in regard to denouncing antisemitism.
The divide is mirrored in the Democratic party at large, with some establishment Democrats unwilling to criticize Israel even as public opinion in the US has shifted against the country over its actions in Gaza. Lander referenced the party split in his speech, saying he would be “one of the Jewish members of Congress most willing to stand up for Palestinian human rights” and noting: “Democrats are painfully divided by our differences about the US relationship to Israel and Palestine, and we have to face up to it squarely.”
It was an issue that had been key for some voters.
“I know him as someone who shows up, and also because he’s taken a moral stand on Gaza, and that was really important to me,” said Kate Dalton, who had volunteered for Lander’s campaign.
Before the result was announced Dalton, 42, had predicted she would be a “puddle of tears” should Lander win. The Guardian lost sight of her, so cannot confirm if she was correct.
The party, held close to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, was well attended, with supporters taking advantage of free booze and a menu that included fried chicken, cajun fries, and popcorn with nutritional yeast” and aonori. Tables were laden with tote bags, which cost $40, and posters, all of which were free, and one of which had an image of a bicycle, a basketball, a hotdog and a pigeon.
Léa Zimmerman, 34, was sitting in the back yard of the bar, wearing a cardigan which had an array of political pin badges: one showed a cartoon drawing of a cat next to a glass of ice and had text reading: “No ICE please.”
Lander has been a fierce critic of ICE, and was notably arrested twice during his mayoral campaign as he sought to draw attention to the plight of immigrants under Donald Trump, including in September 2025 during a protest against detentions.
This month Lander was found not guilty of blocking an elevator during his attempt to inspect rooms holding detained immigrants.
“We need fighters, and he is a fighter,” Zimmerman said. “He is a presence, he actually follows through, and he’s consistent. I’m hoping him and the new wave of people will have that consistency, and follow through on the promises that they make.”
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