New York City is giving socialism a try, and Zohran Mamdani has young women to thank. 

If you found yourself in the Big Apple on Tuesday night, you might have witnessed groups of young women sporting “Hot Girls for Mamdani” T-shirts. In one viral video shared on social media following Mamdani's election night victory to become the next mayor of the city, a young woman wearing the blue shirt joked, “Sharia Law starts now,” seemingly poking fun at critics of Mamdani, who is a Muslim.  

The self described “democratic socialist” earned 50.4% of the vote, according to NBC News, beating independent Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa in a landslide victory. Young people overwhelmingly backed the charismatic Mamdani, but young women in particular ensured his victory.  

According to Tufts Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, 84% of female voters between the ages of 18—29 backed Mamdani in the mayoral race.  

But why? How did Mamdani mobilize the “hot girls” of the Big Apple to vote for policies that have been tested, tried, and show to fail every time, harming the very working people they promised to help? The answer, though not exhaustive, can likely be found within two explanations.  

First, young people are especially susceptible to ideas that are viewed in the public as “new” or trendy. New York City has never had an openly socialist mayor. Furthermore, socialism is marketable on paper—reeking of empathy and the illusion of serving the poor, which taps on the God given female emotion of compassion. Of course men have this emotion too, but speaking in broad generalities, women naturally have an inclination toward maternal care.  

The second reason Mamdani likely captured New York City’s young female vote was recently pointed out by social media influencer Ashton Cohen. The feminist movement, as Cohen explains in a video on Instagram, promised women happiness and fulfillment if they went to an impressive college, built a powerful career, and rejected marriage and motherhood, instead using sex for pleasure.  

Many millennials and Gen-Z women were raised on the feminist message, and now they find themselves buried under student loan debt, unable to buy a home because of the sky high cost of living, working a job that is not as fun or fulfilling as they thought, and alone because they rejected marriage. Talk about an audience primed for an attractive young politician to come along and promise rent freezes and free buses.  

On this week’s edition of “Problematic Women,” we unpack why Mamdani’s socialist message resonated so deeply with young women, and discuss what this says about the feminist movement as a whole. 

Also on today’s show, President Donald Trump has designated Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” over the persecution of Christians. We explain why this is a significant step to bringing real hope to a devastated nation.  

Plus, the British Royal Family is back in the news, though this time the ex-royals have the headlines. Meghan Markle is returning to acting 8 years ago after she announced her retirement from the business. And King Charles III has stripped the title of “Prince” from his brother Andrew over the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

Join the conversation on this week’s edition of “Problematic Women.”

Follow us on Instagram for EXCLUSIVE bonus content and the chance to be featured in our episodes:

https://www.instagram.com/problematicwomen/

Connect with our hosts on socials!

Elise McCue

X: https://x.com/intent/user?screen_name=EliseMcCue

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elisemccueofficial/

Virginia Allen:

X: https://x.com/intent/user?screen_name=Virginia_Allen5

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/virginiaallenofficial/

Morgonn McMichael:

X: https://x.com/intent/user?screen_name=morgonnm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgonnm/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices