Hold onto your hats, folks—New York City’s incoming mayor is already playing kingmaker in Queens with a pick that’s sure to raise eyebrows among those wary of the far-left’s growing clout.
According to the New York Post, on Saturday, NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani threw his weight behind Diana Moreno, a fellow member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), to take over his soon-to-be-vacated New York State Assembly seat representing a slice of western Queens, with a special election set for Feb. 3, 2026.
This endorsement, delivered during a news conference at Athens Square in Astoria, comes as Mamdani prepares to step into the mayor’s office on Jan. 1, 2026, leaving behind a district known for its progressive leanings.
Mamdani didn’t just send a press release—he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Moreno at the event, signaling a clear passing of the torch to someone he calls a longtime “comrade” in the DSA.
With this nod, Moreno is now positioned as a frontrunner in a district that’s already tilted far to the left, where policies often prioritize ideological purity over practical governance, at least in the view of many traditionalists.
Let’s be clear: Mamdani’s choice isn’t just a friendly pat on the back—it’s a calculated move to keep the DSA’s influence alive and kicking in Queens.
Moreno, born in Ecuador, brings a resume stacked with DSA credentials, having served as communications director and co-chair of the Queens branch, which suggests she’s well-versed in pushing a progressive agenda.
Her platform, predictably, leans hard into tenant protections and universal child care—ideas that sound noble but often come with hefty price tags and questionable feasibility for taxpayers already stretched thin.
“I am prepared to defend our immigrant neighbors, win universal no-cost child care for our working families, and fight and fight for the tenant protections and affordable housing that my family and our neighbors will need to call Queens home for generations to come,” Moreno declared at the conference.
While Moreno’s words drip with passion, one can’t help but wonder how “no-cost” programs magically materialize without someone footing the bill—likely the hardworking folks who don’t qualify for the handouts.
Mamdani, for his part, couldn’t resist waxing poetic about his successor, saying, “I am so proud to endorse my friend, to endorse my fellow DSA member, Diana Moreno, to be the next assembly member to represent the great 36th District.” That’s a lovely sentiment, but it’s hard to ignore that this “great district” might just become a testing ground for policies that prioritize ideology over balanced budgets or common-sense solutions.
Of course, Moreno isn’t running unopposed—other contenders like Meherunnisa “Mary” Jobaida and Rana Abdelhamid are in the mix, each bringing their own flavor of activism to the table.
Jobaida, a first-generation Bangladeshi American, pushes a criminal justice platform that includes “decriminalizing poverty,” a concept that sounds compassionate but risks undermining accountability if taken to extremes.
Abdelhamid, a Harvard-educated former Google employee who once earned a comfortable six-figure salary, now focuses on combating anti-Muslim sentiment post-9/11, though her past critiques of corporate America might raise questions about consistency given her own tech background.