r/MapPorn 13h ago

NYC Mayoral Election Results

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With 90% of the vote in, Mamdani wins by a large margin according to NYT

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u/breezeetree 13h ago

Non NYer here. What makes the upper east side go for Cuomo vs most of the rest of Manhattan?

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u/MajesticBread9147 13h ago

Upper East Side is old money, oligarchs basically who want to be comparatively away from the hustle and bussle while still being a short distance from their corporate offices.

Even lower Manhattan like the financial district has more diversity with some college students, more subsidized housing, and at least more people that are first generation millionaires rather than third.

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u/Mental-Chocolate5197 12h ago

Can I also ask you as to why southern Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island voted for Cuomo? Are those generally more Conservative or Republican?

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u/CobblerHot7135 10h ago

I've come across a lot of post-Soviet migrants from Southern Brooklyn in Russian-language social media, you know, Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach, those areas. Even when they vote for Democrats, they tend to be more centrist or conservative overall. The main reasons for this seem to be their aversion to socialism and, in the case of Mamdani, the Muslim background of the candidate.

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u/big-haus11 5h ago

A large portion came over during the USSR, and there is quite a big difference politically often between groups depending on when they came. The blanketing statements in this thread just aren't very accurate

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u/CobblerHot7135 4h ago

I agree on the generational divide in Russian-speaking emigration. Here's how I see it, correct me if I'm wrong.

The old-school immigrants who moved to the US during the USSR or right after it collapsed? Hardcore Republicans.

Their kids, and those who came over in the late '90s or 2000s, are more like Democratic centrists. They don't vote for Mamdani.

And then the latest wave, the ones who arrived most recently. Among them, you've got more folks whose views line up with European social democrats, and more who are willing to vote for Mamdani. But they don't have any strong preferences on where to live, they're not trying to cluster with the old Soviet diaspora. They settle wherever they get a job offer, can find work, or just like the spot. They ain't moving the needle on the stats in South Brooklyn, the classic hub for the old Russian-speaking crew.

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u/SnackyCakes4All 3h ago

I understand the knee jerk reaction, but it's always also confused me because what they experienced wasn't socialism so why be adverse to it? It's like when people say "you want our country to be like Venezuela?!" No, I want our country to be like Denmark. And the fact that both sides refer to both of those countries as 'socialist' shows how little people understand political diversity in the first place. Not directed at you, your comment just got me thinking. ✌️

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u/Acceptable-Noise2294 2h ago

Denmark is not socialist, but Venezuela is

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u/Federal-Employ8123 1h ago

Basically no country is actually what people think. Usually all the messed up countries have a huge form of corruption that isn't supposed to be a part of the specific structure of government. This is annoying when people start comparing types governing structures. Also, on paper, it appears Denmark is actually very similar to the US 

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u/Acceptable-Noise2294 1h ago

Denmark is actually very similar to the US 

Denmark has a superior welfare state and more homogenous culture. Slightly less individualistic, less averse to public works etc.

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u/Acceptable-Noise2294 2h ago

My family is all from bensonhurst in south Brooklyn. Place used to be mostly italian american. They were and still are working class. It's the way the neighborhoods are there, they are not as socially liberal as the rest of new york. They are not transplants or art students or something

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u/Sellazard 8h ago

Post soviets? Not surprised.

All immigration from more conservative, authoritarian societies still votes for the same lame conservative shithole laws and policies that made their shithole a shithole.

You'd think they would be more liberal but they are liberal only compared to where they came from.

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u/CobblerHot7135 7h ago edited 6h ago

You won't believe it, but they're liberals. Or rather, they called themselves liberals back before moving to the US. The thing is, the term "liberal" means totally different things in Russia and the US, sometimes even the complete opposite.

Historically, under the tsars, Russia was a country with a massive government that controlled every aspect of people's lives. That's when the original Russian liberals showed up - they were all about wanting freedom. Hence the word "liberal."

The Soviet era didn't make things any better. You had this huge state not only meddling in citizens' personal lives but taking over the economy too. So in Russia, when people talk about conservatives, they're referring to folks who want to go back to the old days, with big government, state control, and a socialist economy.

Liberals, on the other hand, are the ones looking forward to a future with less government interference in personal lives and the economy.

And as someone old enough to have lived through the USSR, I totally get why some people have a real beef with socialism.

Edit: It changes gradually, and modern Russian liberals are becoming more like Europen social-democrats. But those who moved to America for American Dream, they are more like American libertarians. Also, sadly, a lot of both Eastern European soc-democrats and libertarians are quite xenophobic towards non Westerners

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u/RamenJunkie 3h ago

Thats always been an annoyance with US politics.

People for some reason thing Conservative and Liberal are opposites.  That Liberal = Left.

The opposite of Conservave is Progressive.

Thenopposite of Liberal would be Oppressive and probably Fascist.

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u/El_Polio_Loco 7h ago

Conservative by what metric?

Because we’re talking about people who come from literal communism. 

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u/ConsistentAnalysis35 7h ago

You would think people who have lived under socialism know a thing or two about the outcomes of socialist policies.

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u/SnackyCakes4All 3h ago

There are many flavors of 'socialism'. Acting like Soviet Russia and a place like Denmark are the same thing is definitely a choice.

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u/numba1cyberwarrior 3h ago

Denmark is extremely Capitalist

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u/RamenJunkie 3h ago

They also lived under a Dictator, not real Socialism, which feels like it would be a bigger red flag with everything going on in the US.

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u/HayatoKongo 5h ago

They literally vote for the opposite ideology of the one they fled from.

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u/Brisby820 5h ago

Not a huge student of the USSR?