Happy Wednesday in New York City, where if you come at the Democratic establishment, you best not miss.

Last night, all three of the Zohran Mamdani-backed candidates for Congress — Brad Lander, Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier — won their races, Lander and Valdez by wide margins. All five of the mayor’s endorsements in the State Assembly won as well, as did nine of the ten candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America. In short: a sweep.

As we wrote in yesterday’s brief, Mamdani staked significant political capital on these races. He deliberately stepped in as the face of the fight, positioning himself against three incumbents or incumbent-backed candidates, powerful labor unions, the House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries and an entire institution of establishment politics in his party. In doing so, he turned the races into a proxy referendum on his political brand, risking not only undermining his own standing, but hamstringing the movement he’s helped to lead.

It’s difficult to overstate the potential implications of a trouncing this dramatic in a city that’s usually seen as a bellwether for national political trends. Mamdani and his progressive allies have put their critics on notice: the anti-establishment fervor that swept New York this time last year, when Mamdani upset former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the mayoral race, was not a blip, but rather the first salvo in a possibly watershed flanking maneuver from the party’s left.

“What you all have shown this evening, whether for state Assembly, state Senate or Congress, is that a year ago, it was not the end of a political movement,” Mamdani said at a victory party last night. “It was the beginning.”

For Mamdani personally, the victories establish him as a king-maker in New York politics. Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old pro-Palestinian activist going up against five-term incumbent Adriano Espaillat, was considered a little-known long shot before Mamdani’s endorsement. Last night, she won by nearly 4 points, despite millions of dollars in outside spending against her.

That kind of upset is sure to win the mayor a number of new allies and deter a host of enemies. One need only look at President Trump to see how crucial a powerful endorsement can be in consolidating party power.

It would appear Mamdani and his ideological partners, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, are on a collision course with their party’s more moderate power centers — Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. We will be there in 2028 to walk you through the fireworks.

Whimsical sea creatures, scantily-dressed mermaids and nautical royalty took over Coney Island on Saturday as thousands celebrated the 44th annual Mermaid Parade, Brooklyn’s joyful start to summer.

Singer-songwriters “King Neptune” Jesse Malin and “Queen Mermaid” Rickie Lee Jones led the procession along Surf Avenue to the sea, where participants threw conch shells and other forms of tribute into the water to placate the gods and start the swimming season.

The parade, which had been in financial jeopardy, came roaring back after crowdfunding and help from Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.

“Resilience” was a sub-theme this year.

Read on to learn more.

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