REUTERS/via SNO Sites/Jeenah Moon

Democratic candidate for New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani reacts after winning the 2025 New York City Mayoral race, at an election night rally in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York, U.S., November 4, 2025. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

One year ago, on Nov. 5, America voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump. The wins in blue states were faced with record-breaking lows. Demographics that were supposed to be Democratic strongholds turned into tight margins. 

Clear to say, Democratic candidates have failed to reach American voters in recent years. But, it seems all hope has not been lost yet for the donkeys. While it was expected that the Democratic Party would win in some of the elections that happened on Nov. 4, the large margins came as a huge surprise. 

Modern Democratic candidates have never won gubernatorial races with such numbers. New Jersey’s governor won by a record-breaking 13.8 points, and Virginia’s governor won by 15 points. To compare this with the presidential election in 2024, the Democrats won New Jersey by only 6.1 points and Virginia by only 5.7 points. The gubernatorial races depict a giant surge in support for the minority party. 

Proposition 50 also passed in California with 29.4 points. Proposition 50 aimed to get the people’s consent to gerrymander the state of California. The bill was proposed in response to Governor Abbot’s attempts to further gerrymander the state of Texas. However, due to the data that the Texas legislature had used to create the new gerrymandered map, the map was struck down by a federal court. Democrats have successfully gerrymandered themselves into a majority in the House of Representatives. 

While all of these wins had a dash of surprise, perhaps the most predictable result of that night was that of the New York City mayoral election. Mamdani had won by 8.9 points. Months of grassroots campaigning had culminated in the results of the polls that night. For a brief fortnight, all of the hope that was lost on the day of the presidential election had seemingly been revived. 

Then, Democrats conceded to the Republicans and passed the fiscal budget plan. 

Senate Minority Leader Senator Schumer decided to bring back Democrats from the brink of courage. He did it by purposefully rallying senators, who were planning on retiring before the next midterms, to vote in favor of the budget bill. With the votes of eight Democrats, the budget plan successfully passed the Senate before passing the House, ending the 40-day government shutdown. 

Of course, what one would expect is that Democrats had struck some kind of deal with the Republicans. The biggest reason Democrats refused to pass the budget was because of the immediate loss of healthcare that would happen when the budget passed. However, the only deal that was promised to the Democrats was a potential negotiation. This negotiation would determine if the Covid-era tax credits, which have helped millions afford their healthcare premiums, could continue into the new fiscal year. In essence, Democrats agreed to pass this budget, which they were previously so opposed to, over being promised a discussion. 

There are many benefits to be found in ending a government shutdown. All of the federal workers who had found themselves without pay are now given the checks that they deserve. But the sudden agreement to pass the budget plan feels unsatisfying. Countless Americans had experienced pain for more than 40 days just for the budget to have been passed as it was. 

I was hopeful that the success shown by the Democrats on that election night might strengthen the Democrats’ will to fight in Congress. However, Senator Schumer reminds me of the nature of the party I was dealing with: the party that has grown complacent with being the “better” option instead of a good option.  

President Trump’s favorability has steadily decreased over the first couple of months of his presidency. It is clear to most individuals that the party image of the Republicans has become less than favorable after the presidential election. However, it can be argued that the average American has lost faith in the Democratic Party: before this presidency, there was a trend in decreasing support for Democrats as well. The results of the Nov. 4 election are a reflection of voters choosing the “better” option; Democrats did not win because voters believed Democrats to be a good option. 

For next year’s midterms, I do believe that the energy prevalent on Nov. 4 will carry over to next year’s midterm elections because the damage done by the Trump administration in one year will still be felt by Americans for a long period of time. However, once voters start forgetting what the Republican administration has done to them, as they did during Biden’s term, I struggle to believe Democrats will be able to carry this momentum in the long term. 

The candidate the DNC seemed most scared of winning that night was Zohran Mamdani, but he is the only individual whose election would have ended with him winning regardless of President Trump’s actions. It is naive to say that the President’s policies played no part in Mamdani winning the election because the damage and harm done to the diverse communities across New York City was definitely an issue that was at the forefront of voters’ minds. However, Mamdani didn’t just look “better” in comparison to the other mayoral candidates, Cuomo or Curtis. He had policies that resonated with New York City residents. 

Mamdani’s win has sent a wave of hope amongst progressives across the United States. His win has created a hope for a stronger Democratic Party, one that fights actively for the benefit of its voter base. A Democratic Party that expects support because of its policies and not due to the flaws of the Republican Party. 

As I watched the CNN report on the election results that night, I remembered how I viewed the Democratic Party in second grade. I remember the ads pushing Americans to vote for Hilary Clinton, the first female candidate for president. At the time, I saw the Democratic Party as the symbol of progress, an advocate for reform. 

Over the years, I have become disillusioned with the image I had of Democrats in second grade. But for a brief moment, as Democratic candidate after Democratic candidate had been announced as winners of their respective races, I wondered if Democrats had become that symbol of hope again.