A mirror across the Atlantic: What Mamdani’s win means for Galway’s left

When Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City based on a campaign promising free public transportation and an audacious plan to freeze rent for four years, left wing progressives around the world took notice. 

Closer to home, those ideas have found expression in the presidential election of Catherine Connolly. 

For Galway’s left-wing representatives, Mamdani’s victory was seen as a reflection of familiar hopes and frustrations that have come to dominate Ireland’s own political conversation.

Sinn Féin TD, Louis O’Hara said: “There’s also a lot of similarities to the issues that we have here in Ireland.

“At the moment, we have a cost-of-living crisis. We have families and households who are really struggling to get by with the price of essential things.”

O’Hara believes that Mamdani’s brand of socialism will resonate hugely in Ireland, and specifically in Galway, where housing and transport are key issues. 

O’Hara sees Mamdani’s win as one which will give “hope to progressive-minded people here and all over the world”. 

“I don’t know if it’s enough to say that there’s a change in mindset across the world or anything like that, but it’s certainly very positive,” O’Hara clarified. 

Reaction from local left wing politicians

“I don’t think we need to look abroad for role models,” Galway City Councillor Alan Curran, a member of the Social Democrats, added, with the utmost respect. 

“I think our role models are here with Catherine Connolly. We have enough politicians in this country who have been flying the flag for democratic socialism for a very long time,” he added.

“It was fabulous,” Curran recalled of Connolly’s final rally, which brought together leaders from Sinn Féin, the Social Democrats, the Green Party, Labour, and others. 

“They all said the same thing. They said this is our opportunity. This is the opportunity for us all to continue the momentum that Catherine’s campaign has built so well, and it shows that there is a want in Irish society for change,” he said.

O’Hara and Curran describe the mood among Galway’s left as “optimistic”, however, they both acknowledge the challenges of unity. 

“We will all have our own candidates,” O’Hara explained in reference to the upcoming by-election – “but I’m sure we can cooperate”. 

Curran echoed that spirit of collaboration, advocating for continued dialogue among the progressive parties. 

“That’s my hope,” Curran said. “With the momentum that we’ve taken from Catherine’s campaign, we can somehow build those connections, maintain those relationships, and have that positive discussion about how we can build an alternative and project an alternative to the people of Ireland.” 

For Galway’s left, Mamdani’s win isn’t a model to copy but a mirror reflecting their own struggles over affordability and unity.

As Curran put it: “What Mamdani has shown over in the US is that people still want this. People still want public services. They still want access to education, access to affordable housing”.