As midnight struck in New York, the giant ball of Irish crystals and LED lights descended from atop the building at 1 Times Square to mark, as it does every year, the end of one era and the beginning of another. And the city didn't just welcome 2026, or the second quarter of the 21st century. Its nearly 8.5 million inhabitants also hailed the dawn of a new age, the age of Zohran Kwame Mamdani.
Zohran Kwame Mamdani was elected as the new mayor of New York City on November 4, marking a ground-breaking win for a number of underrepresented groups. It was a home run for Democratic Socialists, whose platform Mamdani has championed since starting his career for public office. It was also a win for minorities, with Mamdani becoming the city's first Muslim and Indian-Ugandan mayor.More than anything, though, it was a sweeping victory for soccer fanatics.