New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani just turned Tuesday’s primaries into a warning shot for the Democratic establishment.
All three Democratic Socialist candidates backed by Mamdani won their races, giving the newly powerful mayor another burst of influence as New York Democrats confront fresh questions about who actually controls the party’s future.
The biggest shock came from two incumbent defeats. Two sitting House Democrats took the hardest hits: Brad Lander ousted Rep. Dan Goldman of New York, and Darializa Avila Chevalier took down Rep. Adriano Espaillat of New York.
Mamdani’s third win came in the open 7th District, where Claire Valdez overcame the preferred candidate of retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez of New York.
Velázquez is ending a more than three-decade House career that made her the first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress.
CNN Projecting a sweep for Zohran Mamdani in NY Primaries. pic.twitter.com/9RtA0LMZXb
— Acyn (@Acyn) June 24, 2026
Together, the wins raised the stakes around Mamdani’s growing footprint in Democratic politics and sharpened the question already hanging over the party: whether old-line institutional support still carries the same force in New York.
Republicans wasted no time turning the socialist sweep into an attack on House Democratic leadership.
Rep. Mike Lawler of New York accused House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York of protecting himself while other establishment Democrats fell.
🪖Seventeen battle-tested candidates are ready to strike a decisive blow to the Democrat Machine — but they urgently need resources. 🪖 Join the grassroots push to save the House Majority and back them today! ➡️➡️➡️ Make a 17X impact!!! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
“Tonight’s results in New York City prove one thing, @RepJeffries cut a deal with @ZohranKMamdani to save himself and threw everyone else under the bus,” Lawler wrote on X, alleging that Ossé would have primaried Jeffries.
“The Democrat party has officially become the party of Zohran, AOC, & Bernie,” Lawler continued.
Lawler now has his own general-election fight lined up in New York’s 17th Congressional District.
In New York’s 17th District, U.S. Army veteran Cait Conley survived a crowded Democratic field and now heads into a marquee matchup with Lawler.
Tonight’s results in New York City prove one thing, @RepJeffries cut a deal with @ZohranKMamdani to save himself and threw everyone else under the bus.
Had @OsseChi primaried Hakeem, he would have won.
The Democrat party has officially become the party of Zohran, AOC, &…
— Mike Lawler (@lawler4ny) June 24, 2026
Lawler, a two-term Republican and Trump ally, first flipped the district in 2022 and then held it again in 2024, making him one of his party’s most durable swing-seat incumbents.
Lawler has already tried to make Conley’s Biden-era National Security Council service a liability, tying her to the deadly 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York had a much easier night. The progressive star cruised past Marty Dolan, a former Wall Street executive who tried to end her four-term run.
Her easy win arrived as her national profile keeps fueling higher-office chatter.
Trump-backed state Sen. Peter Oberacker also locked up the Republican nomination against Rep. Josh Riley of New York.
Riley, a first-term Democrat, captured his seat in 2024 by a narrow margin over Republican Rep. Marcus Molinaro.
The retirement of longtime Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York also opened another crowded Democratic fight.
New York Assemblyman Micah Lasher emerged from that race, beating rivals including anti-Trump lawyer George Conway, Kennedy family scion Jack Schlossberg and New York Assemblyman Alex Bores.
Former New York Police Department officer Michael DeCillis also secured the Democratic line against Rep. Nicole Malliotakis of New York.
Beyond New York, the night delivered wins and losses for candidates trying to position themselves for larger fights.
In Maryland, Gov. Wes Moore easily claimed the Democratic nomination again, dispatching physician Eric Felber and running mate LaTrece Hawkins Lytes, according to the Associated Press.
Thank you, Maryland! Your votes made this all happen and I am proud to be your Democratic nominee for Governor again.
The work doesn’t stop now! Get involved to keep this momentum going here: https://t.co/OmRQoem0gQ 🔥 pic.twitter.com/W4T4lkuuH8
— Wes Moore (@iamwesmoore) June 24, 2026
“Thank you, Maryland! Your votes made this all happen and I am proud to be your Democratic nominee for Governor again. The work doesn’t stop now!” Moore wrote in a social media post.
Moore is running for another term while also facing persistent speculation about a possible 2028 White House bid.
The governor has repeatedly said his attention is on Maryland and his reelection, not a presidential campaign.
Maryland also dealt a blow to former Rep. David Trone, whose self-funded comeback attempt fell short.
Rep. April McClain Delaney of Maryland defeated the billionaire Total Wine & More founder in a bruising primary for a western Maryland seat.
The race was expensive on both sides: Trone sank more than $25 million of his own fortune into it, while Delaney spent at least $7 million of her own money.
Another Maryland generational handoff began in the district long held by former House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, where Del. Adrian Boafo won the Democratic nomination.
Hoyer, 86, is leaving after 45 years representing southern Maryland.
Boafo, 32, outlasted roughly two dozen Democrats, among them former U.S. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn.
In South Carolina, Charleston County Councilwoman Jenny Costa Honeycutt moved closer to replacing nationally known Republican Rep. Nancy Mace.
Honeycutt beat state Rep. Mark Smith in the GOP runoff after both advanced from an initial round where no candidate cleared 50%.
Utah’s new 1st Congressional District also produced a Democratic nominee, with former Rep. Ben McAdams winning a four-way primary.
His defeated rivals included Utah state Sen. Nate Blouin, Michael Farrell and former tech worker Liban Mohamed.
McAdams now moves toward a November race against Republican Riley Owen, a contest expected to draw heavy attention in Utah.
