Sophia Brewster Ford and Rajkumari Maharaj woke up early on Election Day. Donning their purple and yellow union shirts, they headed to the Morris Park Community Association polling site in the Bronx.
By 9 a.m., the two immigrant women were at the polling site, handing out flyers and talking to voters.
Both women are airport workers and members of 32BJ SEIU, the largest union of property service workers in the city, with a large immigrant membership of Latino and Caribbean workers.
In April, their union had previously endorsed former governor Andrew Cuomo in the hotly contested Democratic primary, but shifted their endorsement to Mamdani in June after he handily won the primary, citing their shared values in fighting for increased wages, affordable housing, and better transportation.
Still, with Cuomo winning the Bronx by 18 points in the primary, earning 54% of the vote compared to Mamdani’s 36%, members like Ford and Maharaj said they came to the polling sites early in hopes of swaying the Boogie Down Bronx toward Mamdani.
Ford, 50, an immigrant from Panama, told Documented that Mamdani’s commitment to affordability motivated her to canvass in support of him.
“He can make things happen, like affordable homes,” she said. “I love him for that. The rents are so expensive here in New York. He will bring a good change.”
She said that many of the voters she talked to expressed support for Mamdani.
“The response I hear today is that people want a change,” she said. “A lot of people showed up today. It’s a huge day, and we are going to make it happen.”
Maharaj, 60, an immigrant from Trinidad, also found that Mamdani’s message of affordability was resonating with the people she spoke with.
“A lot of people said they didn’t know much about Zohran, but once we gave them the information and educated them about it, they were all on board,” she said.
On Oct. 29, 32BJ SEIU welcomed Mamdani to its New York Metro membership meeting. There, he gave a speech before 400 union members. For Maharaj, meeting Mamdani in person after six weeks of canvassing for him was deeply moving.
“When Zorhan himself visited the office and met each and every one of us individually to give us thanks for our support, that meant a lot to me because we have never had anyone do that,” said Maharaj. “For me, it was an experience that I will never forget.”
Despite previously endorsing Cuomo, the union has fully embraced Mamdani, becoming one of his closest allies in the city. Since mid-September, over 1,900 32BJ SEIU members have directly participated in the union’s campaign to elect Mamdani. According to the union, members have knocked on 45,000 doors, made 90,000 calls to voters in the city, and leafletted public spaces in all five boroughs.
“Zohran Mamdani has united and inspired New Yorkers around a positive and optimistic vision for a truly affordable city,” said Manny Pastreich, president of 32BJ SEIU. “He is ready and equipped to fight for our city and has made clear he is ready to stand up to attacks from the Trump administration.”
In the Bronx, which is home to thousands of 32BJ SEIU members, the union’s active support for Mamdani may be resonating with voters.
Outside the poll site, most of the voters who Documented spoke with were immigrants, and many said they were voting for Mamdani.
Bangladeshi immigrant Saeed Rashid, 28, along with his wife Humaiyara, both voted for Mamdani.
“We just want to see some fresh ideas, and he’s young,” said Rashid. “Affordability means a lot to working-class families.”
Filipino immigrant George Legaspi, 58, and his 87-year-old mother, Elenor Legaspi, both voted for Mamdani, as well. When asked why he voted for the frontrunner, Legaspi told Documented that his union’s support of Mamdani tipped the scales for him. In July, 1199SEIU, a sister union to 32BJ, endorsed Mamdani after a grassroots effort by rank-and-file members demanded that the union do so.
Yemeni immigrant Ibrahim Nasher, 43, and his family of four pulled up and piled out of their SUV to vote for Mamdani. Nasher says that Mamdani’s visibility and his Muslim background were the main reasons for his support.
“I feel like Zohran has more social media and is smarter than the other candidates,” he said. “He’s always talking about how he can make life easier for us, and he is like us.”
His son-in-law, Ali Ali, 32, highlighted Mamdani’s visibility in the Muslim community over Cuomo’s as a big factor in his support.
“Cuomo is not out there; he’s more introverted,” he said.
Third-generation Dominican, Cristina Perez, 20, said she was totally opposed to Cuomo.
“Cuomo is being endorsed by Trump, and I don’t agree with that.”
For her, Mamdani’s proposal to freeze the rent was what won her over.
你知道吗？非公民办理驾照时的这个错误可能会导致选民欺诈
“I like that Zohran wants to do a rent freeze; that’s really important for the people who live in this city. I lived here all my life, and right now it’s important to continue to live in this city with how much rent prices have increased,” she said. “Zohran is the only one who cares about that.”
Although she rarely takes city buses, she said Mamdani’s promise of free buses also resonates with her.
“I don’t ride buses,” she said, “but if they are free, I will.”
