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A century before Mamdani, this Jewish socialist mayoral candidate divided NYC Jews
A socialist immigrant running for mayor on an anti-war, pro–working class platform divides New York’s Jews over whether his campaign, and potential victory, might stoke antisemitism.
The year isn’t 2025, and the man isn’t Zohran Mamdani. It’s 1917, and Jewish labor lawyer Morris Hillquit is running on the Socialist Party ticket.
While Hillquit fell well short of winning, he received more than 100,000 votes, or about 22% — over four times the Socialist tally four years earlier. He ran again in 1932, receiving about 12 percent of the vote.
Who was Hillquit, and how did his mayoral moment parallel the political currents shaping Mamdani’s rise today?
The economic parallels
Many aspects of Hillquit’s 1917 and 1932 mayoral platforms bear a striking resemblance to Mamdani’s today, according to Shelton Stromquist, emeritus professor of history at the University of Iowa and author of Claiming the City: A Global History of Workers’ Fight for Municipal Socialism.
Hillquit called for public ownership of the city’s transportation, and for the construction of affordable housing to replace substandard living arrangements. He also promised to bring down food prices, pledging to “put the milk profiteers out of business” by buying milk directly from farmers and selling it at cost.
Mamdani’s campaign has echoed many of those ideas, centering on affordability with proposals to make buses “fast and free,” freeze rents for tenants in rent-stabilized apartments, and create city-owned grocery stores.
And just as Mamdani has positioned his campaign as fighting big-money influence, Hillquit’s campaigns took on a populist tone.
“Too long have the people of New York been misruled for the benefit of bankers, franchise magnates, realty speculators, landlords, and other capitalists,” read a pamphlet distributed by the Socialist Party endorsing Morris Hillquit for mayor in 1932.
Both campaigns also drew on immigrant pride, according to Stromquist. Mamdani was born in Uganda; Hillquit in modern-day Latvia, then part of the Russian Empire, in 1869. Hillquit’s family immigrated to the U.S. in 1896, settling in a Lower East Side tenement. He dropped out of school to help support them, working in garment factories and later helping to start the United Hebrew Trades, a garment workers’ union.
Like Mamdani, “Hillquit’s campaign was singular in many ways, but at the same time, it was very much a part of a broader movement that had been growing and spreading,” Stromquist said.
Mamdani, for his part, cites Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders — a fellow democratic socialist — as an inspiration. Sanders endorsed Mamdani and featured him on his “Fighting Oligarchy” tour, events that often draw tens of thousands of people and highlight other rising democratic socialists, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. A recent poll shows socialism is more appealing to college students than capitalism.
Municipal socialism was also gaining traction in the early 20th century. In 1910, Jewish politician and journalist Victor Berger became the first socialist elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing a Milwaukee district. In 1913, socialists won a majority on Hamilton, Ohio’s city council and elected the mayor.
And while Hillquit lost the 1917 mayoral race, socialists still made gains in New York City that year: 10 state assemblymen, seven city aldermen, and one municipal judge were elected on the Socialist Party ticket. Of those 18 elected, 16 were Jewish.
A campaign that divided Jews
Mamdani’s positions on Israel have roiled Jews across the country, and he’s often had to defend himself against allegations of antisemitism for: refusing to outright condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada;” reiterating support for Palestinians in his statement on the Gaza ceasefire; vowing to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York; and saying he doesn’t recognize Israel as a Jewish state. He’s simultaneously built a coalition of Jews who support him.
During the 1917 mayoral election, opposition to U.S. involvement in World War I overshadowed economic concerns for many voters, according to Stromquist.
Hillquit, a pacifist, was a principal co-author of the Socialist Party’s resolution opposing U.S. entry into World War I, and he made peace a central plank of his campaign.
His stance drew fierce backlash. Opponents labeled him “a traitor and an agent of the Kaiser,” and the attacks quickly grew personal. A 1917 editorial in this publication, the Yiddish Forverts, noted that Hillquit’s “bitterest enemies wish to see him drown in the Rutger Street fountain, or hanged off a sloop on the East Side.”
Hillquit’s position split the Jewish community. Some feared antiwar sentiment would make Jews appear unpatriotic and fuel antisemitism, according to Gil Ribak, associate professor of Judaic Studies at the University of Arizona and author of the paper “For Peace, Not Socialism”: The 1917 Mayoralty Campaign in New York City and Immigrant Jews in a Global Perspective.”
One newspaper editor wrote to his readers as “a Jew to Jews,” asking them if they wanted “to give a chance for our neighbors to say that we are not loyal enough to America?”
Even Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis weighed in, telling his colleagues at a private meeting of Zionist leadership in 1917, “I cannot help feeling myself that the pacifistic attitude of some Jews is a danger to all Jews, and some form of a pogrom would not be at all unlikely.”
Others dismissed such concerns as fearmongering and rejected the idea that Jews had to vote a certain way to prevent antisemitism. As Forward founding editor Abraham Cahan argued in this publication, “Well, if we are destined, heaven forbid, to have the antisemitic bear come at us, then let’s not give our vote to a corrupt gang.”
Ultimately, the attacks on Hillquit did not deter Jewish voters. Though he fell well short of winning office, according to Ribak, turnout for Hillquit was especially strong in Jewish neighborhoods with the socialist candidate winning more than 60 percent of the Jewish vote in some areas of the Lower East Side.
Chana Pollack contributed research. Jacob Kornbluh contributed writing.
The post A century before Mamdani, this Jewish socialist mayoral candidate divided NYC Jews appeared first on The Forward.
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New York City Comptroller Affirms Commitment to Israel Bonds as Mamdani Under Fire Over Handling of Antisemitism
New York City Comptroller Mark Levine speaking on April 15, 2026. Photo: Luiz Rampelotto/EuropaNewswire/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
New York City’s top financial official defended the city’s ongoing investment in Israel bonds as the administration of Mayor Zohran Mamdani faced growing criticism over its refusal to adopt a formal definition of antisemitism and continued hostile posture toward the Jewish state, paving the way for a showdown over how New York should address hate crimes and foreign investment policy.
Comptroller Mark Levine said on Wednesday that bonds issued by the Israeli government remained a safe, long-standing investment for city pension funds, insisting that financial decisions must be separated from political pressure. Levine pointed to the bonds’ decades-long record of repayment and argued his office’s responsibility was to maximize returns for retirees, not respond to shifting political campaigns.
“This is not political. It shouldn’t be political,” said Levine, a Democrat. “Israel bonds have never missed a payment in 70 years, ever, not once.”
The comptroller noted that the city has investments in other foreign countries but only faces protests for its association with Israel.
“And by the way, we’ve had no protesting about our investments in Saudi Arabia, our investments in Pakistan or China — only this one little, tiny sliver,” Levine said.
His comments came as the Mamdani administration faced continued scrutiny over its approach to Israel and antisemitism policy. Mamdani, a far-left democratic socialist who has made anti-Israel activism a cornerstone of his political career, has urged Levine to end city investments in Israel bonds.
Mamdani has long been an outspoken supporter of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to isolate Israel on the international stage as the first step toward its elimination. Leaders of the movement have repeatedly stated their goal is to destroy the world’s only Jewish state.
In New York City specifically, records show that Israel bonds, historically yielding approximately 5 percent annually, have outperformed many alternatives.
Meanwhile, Israeli firms pour billions of dollars and tens of thousands of jobs into the local economy, and business experts have warned that a push for divestment could lead Israeli-associated and Jewish-owned companies to leave.
A study released by the United States-Israel Business Alliance in October revealed that, based on 2024 data, 590 Israeli-founded companies directly created 27,471 jobs in New York City that year and indirectly created over 50,000 jobs when accounting for related factors, such as buying and shipping local products.
These firms generated $8.1 billion in total earnings, adding an estimated $12.4 billion in value to the city’s economy and $17.9 billion in total gross economic output.
As for the entire state, the report, titled the “2025 New York – Israel Economic Impact Report,” found that 648 Israeli-founded companies generated $8.6 billion in total earnings and $19.5 billion in gross economic output, contributing a striking $13.3 billion in added value to the economy. These businesses also directly created 28,524 jobs and a total of 57,145 when accounting for related factors.
From financial tech leaders like Fireblocks to cybersecurity powerhouse Wiz, Israeli entrepreneurs have become indispensable to the innovation ecosystem. The number of Israeli-founded “unicorns,” privately held companies with a valuation of at least $1 billion, operating in New York City has quadrupled since 2019, increasing from five to 20.
Beyond its finances, New York City will not use a codified definition of antisemitism in evaluating complaints or incidents, according to administration officials. Instead, the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, led by Phylisa Wisdom, will assess cases individually without relying on a fixed legal or policy definition.
“The first thing I’ll say is that across city government, there is not a definition codified for any form of hate at all,” Wisdom said on Wednesday while presiding over the City Council’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism
The decision marks a departure from previous city policy, which had incorporated the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism. The Mamdani administration revoked that standard when he entered office, arguing that rigid definitions can risk conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism and may complicate the handling of politically sensitive speech.
IHRA — an intergovernmental organization comprising dozens of countries including the US and Israel — adopted the “working definition” of antisemitism in 2016. Since then, the definition has been widely accepted by Jewish groups and lawmakers across the political spectrum, and it is now used by hundreds of governing institutions, including the US State Department, European Union, and United Nations. Law enforcement also uses it as a tool for matters such as hate-crime investigations and sentencing.
According to the definition, antisemitism “is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.” It provides 11 specific, contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere. Beyond classic antisemitic behavior associated with the likes of the medieval period and Nazi Germany, the examples include denial of the Holocaust and newer forms of antisemitism targeting Israel such as demonizing the Jewish state, denying its right to exist, and holding it to standards not expected of any other democratic state.
Critics say the absence of a clear definition could weaken enforcement and create inconsistency in how incidents are classified. Some lawmakers have pointed to recent public exchanges in which officials were unable or unwilling to clearly articulate what constitutes antisemitism under the city’s current framework.
The debate has intensified against the backdrop of a broader surge in antisemitic hate crimes in New York City. Advocacy groups and elected officials have raised concerns that the policy shift could make it harder to respond effectively at a time of heightened tension and increased reported incidents.
The majority of all hate crimes in New York City over the first three months of this year have targeted Jews, according to data released by the New York Police Department (NYPD).
“Confirmed hate crimes increased nearly 12 percent this quarter citywide. We continue to see that the vast majority of our hate crimes are antisemitic in nature,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said earlier this month. “In fact, in the first quarter of 2026, more than half of all confirmed hate crimes, or 55 percent, were antisemitic, despite Jews only making up approximately 10 percent of the population of New York City.”
Mamdani took office on Jan. 1.
However, the surge in anti-Jewish hate crimes predated Mamdani.
Jews were targeted in the majority (54 percent) of all hate crimes perpetrated in New York City in 2024, according to data issued by the NYPD. A recent report released in December by the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism noted that figure rose to a staggering 62 percent in the first quarter of 2025, despite Jewish New Yorkers comprising a small minority of the city’s population.
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Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Extended by Three Weeks, Trump Says
Smoke rises after an Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in southern Lebanon, March 24, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Stringer
US President Donald Trump on Thursday said in a post on Truth Social the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by three weeks.
Trump posted on social media that he and several top officials in his administration met with Israeli and Lebanese representatives in the Oval Office.
“The Meeting went very well! The United States is going to work with Lebanon in order to help it protect itself from Hezbollah,” Trump said, referring to the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group which Israel was fighting before a temporary truce was reached earlier this month.
“The Ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by THREE WEEKS,” the president added. “I look forward in the near future to hosting the Prime Minister of Israel, [Benjamin] Netanyahu, and the President of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun. It was a Great Honor to be a participant at this very Historic Meeting!”
The US-mediated ceasefire, which was set to expire on Sunday, has yielded a significant reduction in violence, but attacks have continued in southern Lebanon, where Israeli troops have seized a self-declared buffer zone.
Hezbollah says it has “the right to resist” occupying forces.
Wednesday marked Lebanon‘s deadliest day since the ceasefire took effect on April 16.
Hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel reignited on March 2, when the terrorist group opened fire in support of Tehran in the regional war. The ceasefire in Lebanon emerged separately from Washington’s efforts to resolve its conflict with Tehran, though Iran had called for Lebanon to be included in any broader truce.
Hezbollah said it carried out four operations in south Lebanon on Wednesday, saying they were a response to Israeli strikes.
Nearly 2,500 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel went on the offensive in response to Hezbollah’s March 2 attack, according to Lebanese authorities. Israeli officials say the vast majority of those killed have been Hezbollah terrorists.
Israel is occupying a belt of the south that extends 5 to 10 km (3 to 6 miles) into Lebanon, saying it aims to shield northern Israel from attacks by Hezbollah, which has fired hundreds of rockets during the war.
The Lebanese government has opened direct contacts with Israel despite strong objections from Hezbollah, which was established by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 1982.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun had said Beirut’s envoy to Thursday’s talks in Washington, Lebanese ambassador to the US Nada Moawad, would seek a ceasefire extension and a halt to demolitions being carried out by Israel in villages in the south.
A Lebanese official said Beirut wants a ceasefire extension as a prerequisite for talks to expand beyond the ambassadorial level to the next phase, in which Lebanon would push for an Israeli withdrawal, the return of Lebanese detained in Israel, and a delineation of the land border.
Israel says its objectives in the talks with Lebanon include securing the dismantlement of Hezbollah and creating conditions for a peace deal. Israel has sought to make common cause with the Lebanese government over Hezbollah, which Beirut has been seeking to disarm peacefully for the past year.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attend Thursday’s meeting along with Vice President JD Vance and the US ambassadors to Israel and Lebanon. Israel was represented by its ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter.
Rubio hosted the first meeting between Leiter and Moawad on April 14 – the highest-level contact between Lebanon and Israel in decades.
Washington has denied any link between its Lebanon mediation and diplomacy over the Iran war.
Hezbollah says the Lebanon ceasefire was the result of Iranian pressure rather than US mediation.
Aoun has cited goals including halting Israeli attacks on Lebanon and securing the withdrawal of Israeli troops.
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Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Extended by Three Weeks, Trump Says
Smoke rises after an Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in southern Lebanon, March 24, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Stringer
U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said in a post on Truth Social the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by three weeks.
Trump posted on social media that he and several top officials in his administration met with Israeli and Lebanese representatives in the Oval Office.
“The Meeting went very well! The United States is going to work with Lebanon in order to help it protect itself from Hezbollah,” Trump said, referring to the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group which Israel was fighting before a temporary truce was reached earlier this month.
“The Ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by THREE WEEKS,” the president added. “I look forward in the near future to hosting the Prime Minister of Israel, [Benjamin] Netanyahu, and the President of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun. It was a Great Honor to be a participant at this very Historic Meeting!”
The US-mediated ceasefire, which was set to expire on Sunday, has yielded a significant reduction in violence, but attacks have continued in southern Lebanon, where Israeli troops have seized a self-declared buffer zone.
Hezbollah says it has “the right to resist” occupying forces.
Wednesday marked Lebanon‘s deadliest day since the ceasefire took effect on April 16.
Hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel reignited on March 2, when the terrorist group opened fire in support of Tehran in the regional war. The ceasefire in Lebanon emerged separately from Washington’s efforts to resolve its conflict with Tehran, though Iran had called for Lebanon to be included in any broader truce.
Hezbollah said it carried out four operations in south Lebanon on Wednesday, saying they were a response to Israeli strikes.
Nearly 2,500 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel went on the offensive in response to Hezbollah’s March 2 attack, according to Lebanese authorities. Israeli officials say the vast majority of those killed have been Hezbollah terrorists.
Israel is occupying a belt of the south that extends 5 to 10 km (3 to 6 miles) into Lebanon, saying it aims to shield northern Israel from attacks by Hezbollah, which has fired hundreds of rockets during the war.
The Lebanese government has opened direct contacts with Israel despite strong objections from Hezbollah, which was established by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 1982.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun had said Beirut’s envoy to Thursday’s talks in Washington, Lebanese ambassador to the US Nada Moawad, would seek a ceasefire extension and a halt to demolitions being carried out by Israel in villages in the south.
A Lebanese official said Beirut wants a ceasefire extension as a prerequisite for talks to expand beyond the ambassadorial level to the next phase, in which Lebanon would push for an Israeli withdrawal, the return of Lebanese detained in Israel, and a delineation of the land border.
Israel says its objectives in the talks with Lebanon include securing the dismantlement of Hezbollah and creating conditions for a peace deal. Israel has sought to make common cause with the Lebanese government over Hezbollah, which Beirut has been seeking to disarm peacefully for the past year.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attend Thursday’s meeting along with Vice President JD Vance and the US ambassadors to Israel and Lebanon. Israel was represented by its ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter.
Rubio hosted the first meeting between Leiter and Moawad on April 14 – the highest-level contact between Lebanon and Israel in decades.
Washington has denied any link between its Lebanon mediation and diplomacy over the Iran war.
Hezbollah says the Lebanon ceasefire was the result of Iranian pressure rather than US mediation.
Aoun has cited goals including halting Israeli attacks on Lebanon and securing the withdrawal of Israeli troops.