Elise Stefanik can win in New York — if the GOP suits up and seizes on Democrats’ divisions

Zohran Mamdani, a proud member of the Democratic Socialists of America, won more than 50% of the vote Tuesday in the highest-turnout mayoral race in over half a century.

This was no sleepy off-year fluke, but a record-breaking mobilization — and voters chose Democratic Socialism over everything else on the menu.

Here’s the kicker: Mamdani didn’t beat a Republican.

He beat his own party — crushing the Democratic establishment in a civil war over capitalism, antisemitism and what’s left of the city’s liberal center.

In the process, Mamdani redefined the Democratic Party as openly socialist, pro-criminal and decidedly anti-Israel, leaving the once-powerful centrist wing in tatters.

Now, every mainstream Democrat in New York should be sweating — and every Republican should be suiting up.

This is how the GOP has always won in this state: By seizing the moment when Democrats self-destruct and voters desperately seek sanity.

Rudy Giuliani ran on crime; George Pataki on Cuomo fatigue; Mike Bloomberg after 9/11 chaos.

Not master plans — opportunities seized.

In 2025, with Democrats at war over Israel, socialism and whether the party still had room for moderates, Republicans weren’t positioned to exploit their chance.

Many rank-and-file voters stood by Curtis Sliwa, but President Donald Trump and much of the business community never believed the nominee could win, and stopping the socialist trumped party loyalty.

Trump gave Republicans permission to abandon their own party — and many did.

GOP votes for mayor hit their lowest since 1977.

In doing so, Andrew Cuomo became the de facto Republican candidate.

And viewed that way, Tuesday was a partial success: The right reframed NYC politics around one powerful idea — stopping socialism.

The coalition that emerged to block the far left forms the foundation of a comeback.

And good news: Republicans get a second shot in 12 months.

Gov. Kathy Hochul is historically weak — tolerated, not loved, by her own party.

She governs by default, reads polls like horoscopes, and projects all the charisma of a DMV clerk.

Her coalition is splintering.

The DSA just took the city and they’re marching on Albany.

Enter Elise Stefanik, a North Country congresswoman who’s disciplined, battle-tested and sharp enough to beat Hochul, with national reach and Upstate roots.

But she needs a full machine behind her — not just money, but message, ground game and discipline.

To help her win, Republicans need more than luck. They need a plan.

New York is brutal territory — 11% GOP registration in the city, 23% statewide — but there’s a real opportunity to offer voters a better path to getting the state back on track.

The GOP can’t wait for another perfect storm; it has to build one.

First, start with a simple, coherent message.

Mamdani ran a brilliantly disciplined campaign, giving voters something they could grab on to.

They had no idea how he would pay for free buses and government grocery stores, but everyone could recite his top priorities.

Republicans, too, must articulate an easily digestible platform that cuts across party lines.

The coming race should be about energy prices in Buffalo, housing costs on Long Island and subway crime in Queens.

Second, engage the same leaders and community groups who stood up to Mamdani’s agenda.

They’ve already shown they’ll fight back.

Make them partners in a shared mission to save the state from ideological extremism.

Third, use the campaign financing program to seed new Republican candidates — especially in districts long abandoned by the party.

Matching funds aren’t a progressive perk. Build a farm team of credible, relatable voices who reflect their districts and can actually win.

Fourth, reach out to New Yorkers who know what socialism looks like because they’ve lived through it.

From Cuban and Venezuelan exiles to Eastern Europeans and Chinese immigrants, millions fled the very systems Mamdani romanticizes.

They don’t need a lecture — they need a microphone. Make them the face and voice of this movement.

Fifth, go deep and wide into New York’s Jewish community.

No group felt this election’s fallout more acutely. They saw the mainstreaming of antisemitism and the moral rot that allowed it to flourish.

That offers Republicans a unique chance to expand their coalition with conviction, not calculation.

Sixth, build a real year-round voter operation, not a seasonal scramble.

The 854,000 New Yorkers who voted for Cuomo to stop Mamdani have proven they’ll cross party lines to counter the far left. Bring them home and reinvigorate the GOP.

Finally, invest in cultivating nontraditional media — ethnic media, podcasts, local influencers and neighborhood press.

That’s where swing voters actually live and listen.

Keep the message simple and relentless: New York can’t afford socialism.

Every so often, Democrats lose their minds, voters hit their breaking point, and the door cracks open.

In 2025, the person who walked through was a socialist.

In 2026, it better be a Republican.

Because New York doesn’t just need an opposition party. It needs a comeback story.

David Catalfamo, president of Capital Public Strategies, was the political director of Gov. George Pataki’s 1994 campaign.