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Former President Donald Trump has labeled Zohran Mamdani as “a 100% Communist Lunatic” following Mamdani’s unexpected win in the New York Democratic primary for mayor.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump attacked Mamdani as a “radical leftie” who was “on his way to becoming Mayor”.

“It’s finally happened, the Democrats have crossed the line,” the president wrote. “Yes, this is a big moment in the History of our Country!”

Trump’s remarks were made shortly after Mamdani, a relatively unknown 33-year-old assemblyman from Queens, gained significant attention by leading the race in the contest to become New York’s next mayor, surprising the national Democratic leaders.

Mamdani’s victory was over Andrew Cuomo, the former governor and the favorite for the Democratic nomination. With New York City traditionally favoring Democrats, Mamdani’s triumph offers him a substantial edge in this year’s election to succeed the current mayor, Eric Adams.

Cuomo, who was forced to resign as state governor in 2021 amid allegations of sexual harassment, was seen by younger voters as the status quo candidate at a time when many wanted a decisive break with the past.

Mamdani captured the imagination of many New Yorkers by pledging a number of measures to tackle the “affordability crisis” in a city that has seen living costs soar since the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said he would freeze rents and raise taxes on the wealthy to finance free buses, free universal child care and city-owned grocery stores with reduced food prices.

“Eight months after launching this campaign with the vision of a city that every New Yorker can afford, we have won,” Mamdani said in his victory speech early on Wednesday morning.

Mamdani has proposed increasing taxes on residents who earn more than $1mn a year, and raising New York’s corporate tax rate from 7.25 per cent to 11.5 per cent. However, the New York State government is unlikely to approve the proposals.

The ideas have also caused consternation on Wall Street, where financiers are now trying to find an “anyone-but-Mamdani” candidate capable of halting the self-declared democratic socialist in his tracks.

Some Democrats said they weren’t surprised by Trump’s outburst, and warned that Mamdani was in danger of becoming a “bogeyman” for the right, one it could use to tarnish the whole party.

“Trump and Fox News will be able to point to the Democrats in the biggest US city and say — we were right all along, the party is full of radical socialists and here’s the proof,” said one New York Democratic strategist familiar with Mamdani’s campaign.

“We’ve had Radical Lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He said Mamdani had “AOC+3, Dummies ALL, backing him”, a reference to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive Representative from New York, and three other progressive Democratic congresswomen.

In a follow-up post, Trump suggested that the Democrats should nominate progressive Representative Jasmine Crockett as their candidate in the 2028 presidential election, and “AOC+3” as nominees for vice-president and other high-level cabinet positions.

“Added together with our future Communist Mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani, and our country is really SCREWED!” he wrote.