A socialist lawmaker from Queens, Zohran Mamdani, is reportedly considering a run for mayor, according to the political publication, City & State.  

“It’s going to shift the gravity of the mayoral race leftward in a pretty significant way,” Ryan Adams, a political consultant who’s worked for progressive campaigns, said.

Mamdani, an assemblyman representing Astoria, is one of the seven state lawmakers from the city who are aligned with the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.

“He’s not going [to] lose his job if he runs in 2025, he’s going to build out a broad network of support for DSA candidates across the city,” Adams said.

In Albany, he was part of the “Fix the MTA” campaign that got the agency to run free bus routes.  

John Scott, a state Democratic Party committeeman in western Queens, has known Mamdani since 2020 and was also part of the “Fix the MTA” coalition.

“Even though he is a part of the DSA wing, he’s a part of the progressive wing of New York state politics. His policies and what he is backing has much broader appeal than maybe just in western Queens,” Scott said.

Mamdani is also part of the pro-Palestinian movement. He once got arrested protesting outside of Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer’s home in Brooklyn.

He is also sponsoring the “Not On Our Dime Act” — a bill that would prohibit New York nonprofit groups from supporting Israel’s military or settlements in the West Bank or Gaza. However, it has little support in Albany.  

Mamdani’s positions against Israel may be an issue that separates him from the pack.

So far, the only major candidates who have declared or created campaign accounts are former Comptroller Scott Stringer and Sen. Zellnor Myrie of Brooklyn, with others, like current Comptroller Brad Lander, still considering the race.  

“When it comes to progressive bona fides, it’s a lot more vibes than votes,” Adams, the political consultant, said.

Adams says the definition of “progressive” has changed over recent years.

“When you get someone like Zohran running in here, people are gonna start to see who was at the protest, who was fighting and vocal on certain issues and why,” Adams said.

Mamdani declined to comment or sit for an interview with NY1.

NY1 requested an interview with a representative from the city’s DSA, but the group sent a statement praising his legislative accomplishments, particularly for tenants and transit riders.

“We are committed to opposing Eric Adams’ right wing austerity mayorship,” the NYC DSA said in the statement.

In the statement, the NYC DSA also said it has no specific plans to contest the mayor’s race and so far is not committed to making an endorsement.