The Democrat candidates for mayor of New York City are "homogeneous" and voters can expect "more of the same" from the crowded field, New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino told Newsmax Saturday.
Paladino said Wednesday night's primary debate among the nine Democrats on stage was "out of control" and lacked any substantive vision for the city's future.
"Yeah, it was out of control, and absolutely nothing got really accomplished. What we heard was a complete mirror image of what's been going on today — only taking it slightly more to the left," Paladino said on "Saturday Agenda."
"They're all identical. They are homogeneous. There is absolutely no difference here between any of these candidates.
"We're going to just see more of the same that we've been seeing. It was an embarrassment to think that the greatest city in the world has got these people up on the stage," she said.
Much of Paladino's criticism focused on state Assembly member Zohran Mamdani, a self-identified democratic socialist endorsed Thursday by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
"You mentioned — and I've been on a rant about Zoran now for about a week, as everybody knows, and I'm proud of it because I'm going to say it right again — unless people get educated on exactly what this guy — 32 years old, only a citizen of the United States of America for under 10 years; they say around 2020 he became a citizen — and he's running on the most extreme radical left that a person could ever talk about right now in this city," she said.
The 33-year-old Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, before he and his family moved to New York City when he was 7. He became naturalized as an American citizen a few years after graduating from college.
According to the New York Post, Mamdani said he regrets having once supported New York City mayoral race front-runner Andrew Cuomo. The former New York governor resigned in 2021 amid allegations of sexual misconduct.
Paladino said that while the Democrats on the debate stage sparred on issues such as immigration, public housing, and policing, none of them offered any real solutions and instead doubled down on leftist rhetoric and policies like sanctuary city protections.
"We educate people ... on what exactly is going on right now," Paladino said. "This city has never seen anything quite like this."
Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat who pulled out of the primary to instead run for a second term on an independent ballot line, did not participate in the debate.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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