The Oval Office meeting between Mamdani and Trump last month turned heads, with some observers stunned at what a warm reception the right-wing Republican president gave to the democratic socialist mayor-to-be. But in New York City, this wasn’t so surprising to Rodriguez. And he wasn’t alone.
NBC News exit polling from the November vote showed 9% of 2024 Trump voters who showed up at the polls backed Mamdani, a phenomenon highlighted by one voter’s “MAGA for Mamdani” T-shirt that went viral in the run-up to Election Day. Trump himself was fascinated by the development, citing the statistic to reporters following his meeting with Mamdani.
“A lot of my voters actually voted for” Mamdani, Trump said. “One in 10, and I’m OK with that.”
Mamdani and his allies see their success winning over a segment of Trump voters as a sign of how other Democrats can win back parts of the electorate that spurned the party for Trump in 2024, including young men and immigrants who felt the party was unresponsive to their needs. But Republicans who spoke to NBC News said that while they were surprised by both the number of Trump-Mamdani voters and the congeniality of the president’s meeting with the mayor-elect, they did not feel as if Mamdani unlocked a road map to reconfigure the electorate.
The underlying theme is dissatisfaction with the political establishment.
100%
It’s like sitting in the middle of a crowded ER bleeding out and begging for help while 2 doctors argue with each other about the proper protocol they should proceed with before they even begin to stop the bleeding.
A patient could escape from the psych ward, walk by and just point out how fucked up the situation is, and you would probably be grateful somebody is at least willing to acknowledge reality and trust him more than either doctor.