In a striking contradiction, new polling shows that more than half of New Yorkers stand by their choice of Zohran Mamdani for mayor, yet more than half also oppose the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America.

According to the Siena poll, only 30 percent of likely New York State voters said they had a favorable view of the DSA, while 47 percent viewed the organization unfavorably. Another 23 percent, an alarming share of voters, said they were unsure. Those numbers rise when the polling focuses in on New York City, but, surprisingly, still do not touch a majority. Among likely New York City voters, 49 percent hold a favorable view of the DSA. 

Mamdani himself, however, received far warmer numbers. Sixty-nine percent of New York City voters had a favorable view of the self-described socialist, while only 24 percent held an unfavorable view. Though the poll’s statistical accuracy has been questioned, that favorability rating is higher than either former Mayor Eric Adams or Bill de Blasio reached at the height of their administrations.

The Siena poll surveyed 811 likely Empire State voters, but only about 227 lived in New York City itself, making the city-level data a far smaller sample and one that may not be fully representative.

However, if the data is taken at face value, it paints an odd picture in New York City, First, many of us are still wondering why there is such a broad appeal amongst socialists, and the ideology of socialism. But more strikingly, why do voters appear to overwhelmingly approve of Mamdani, and yet withhold that same trust from the DSA as a political organization? 

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One possible explanation is Trump-esque in nature. To many New Yorkers, Mamdani may have represented the right man for the job, someone who embodied what they saw as the best of an organization without transferring that trust to the organization itself. If so, that could offer some hope to Americans nationwide, as the rise of socialism may depend less on the ideology itself than on the individual chosen to represent it in any given election.

That explanation, however, is not fully satisfying, as it fails to explain why three DSA-backed candidates swept Democrat primaries just weeks ago. 

One thing remains clear: Mamdani, more than the DSA itself, is driving how much of the country sees democratic socialism, and the organization could not have chosen a more effective representative. Conservatives may see through the act, but as a politician, Mamdani is exceptionally skilled. He knows how to wield social media, project charisma, and, most importantly, offer a level of hope and energy that voters crave. It is an uncomfortable reality. But it is one conservatives ignore at their own peril.

But that reality also offers its own cause for hope: attacks on Mamdani may prove more effective than broader arguments against democratic socialism as an ideology. And the available ammunition against the mayor continues to grow by the day.