Three progressive Democrats backed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani won congressional primaries overnight Tuesday to Wednesday in New York, a city with the largest Jewish population in the United States. The victories, in races where Israel was central, highlight the growing strength of the party’s anti-Israel left and its deep split over relations with Israel and Palestine.
The winners were Darializa Avila Chevalier, Brad Lander and Claire Valdez. All three adopted hardline rhetoric toward Israel, described its war in Gaza as “genocide,” and ran against more moderate opponents. Sen. John Fetterman, a pro-Israel Democrat, told CNN that “the radical, filthy left is on the rise.”
Lander, who had Mamdani’s support, said Democrats are “painfully divided” over the U.S., Israel and Palestine, and called former President Joe Biden’s policy toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “catastrophic failure” for being too soft. He also said Israel’s actions in Gaza were genocide and suggested the term might also apply to Israeli activity in Lebanon. In his race against incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman, Lander was attacked by activists who accused him of helping use their tax money “to kill Palestinian children.”
Chevalier was criticized for attending a pro-Palestinian rally in Times Square a day after October 7 and for her role in protests at Columbia University. Valdez pledged to ban all arms sales to Israel, “fight for freedom for Palestinians,” and attack AIPAC, which she said was working against her and other candidates who “oppose apartheid.”
At the same time, several pro-Israel Democrats also won primaries. The most prominent was Adrian Boafo in Maryland, who defeated multiple rivals with backing from AIPAC, which spent $5.7 million on his campaign. Boafo pledged to strengthen the U.S.-Israel alliance while also criticizing Netanyahu. The results are likely to shape the 2028 Democratic presidential race.
