Who’s Afraid of Zohran Mamdani?

Photo: Yuki Iwamura/AP Photo

To win the nomination for mayor, Zohran Mamdani outwitted and outworked the city’s lethargic Democratic political Establishment. And that seems to be driving the old guard mad.

Think of New York’s Democratic Establishment as a network of political clubs, labor unions, big-money donors, elected officials, campaign operatives, newspaper editorial boards, and nonprofit advocacy organizations that collectively calls the shots in most elections. While a number...