In light of Mamdani’s victory over Cuomo for the office of New York City Mayor (despite Cuomo massively outspending Mamdani and having the tacit support of multiple media organizations), the Democratic establishment should be asking itself these questions–and they might not like the answers:

1. During the close of the campaign, Cuomo made explicit anti-Muslim appeals. Did you agree with those appeals?
2. If you didn’t agree with those appeals, even if you didn’t support Mamdani, why didn’t you denounce them?
3. Given that young women are the strongest source of support for the Democratic Party, and women are more likely to vote for Democrats than men overall, why did you favor a sex pest over a happily married guy with no known sex pest problems?
4. Are a rent freeze for many New Yorkers, universal childcare, or free buses* for the city unachievable? Really? Or do you just not like the policies?
5. Given the call for ‘popularism’ with the Democratic Party establishment, does Mamdani’s victory indicate that his signature campaign slogans might, in fact, be popular? If so, are you now willing to support them?
6. Does vote blue no matter who only apply for centrists?

There will be ugly answers for these questions.