Zohran Mamdani, a young South Asian immigrant, won the Democratic Party primary (party selection) for the mayor of New York City, defeating former New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo. Then, after winning the mayoral election on November 4, he created a new surprise not only in New York but also in US politics. At that time, everyone’s eyes were on his popular campaign on social media and the strategy to attract young voters to him.
However, behind Zohran’s historic victory was a strategic thinker. He is also a child of an immigrant family, young in age, but born in the United States. His name is Zara Rahim. He was born into a Bangladeshi immigrant family. For more than a decade, he has been working using digital strategies in politics and culture.
Zara Rahim has been working as Zohran’s chief advisor since last February. She gave a piece of advice that laid the foundation for Zohran’s entire campaign.
In an interview with the New York Times, an adviser to the newly elected mayor said that Zara Rahim advised Zohran Mamdani, “Forget the imaginary New York that political strategists have created, and campaign for the real New York.”
Zara’s idea created a grassroots movement that has employed more than 90,000 volunteers. Through them, they established connections with voters who have long been ignored by New York City politics.
Journey from a Florida classroom to the national stage
Zara Rahim is the child of Bangladeshi immigrant parents. She grew up in South Florida, where they lived in one of the most multicultural areas in the United States.
Zara studied communications at the University of Central Florida (UCF). There, he learned how human stories touch hearts, shape public opinion, and shape society.
It was during this time that Zara realized how technology could change the way stories are told.
Zara’s college friends still remember her as a thoughtful, yet energetic person. She was someone who could talk about politics and pop culture in the same breath.
This blend of interest in politics and understanding of culture became a key feature of Zara’s work later.
On Obama’s campaign team
The life story of this 35-year-old communications strategist is like a movie. Bangladeshi-American Zara Rahim first stepped into politics in 2012 during Barack Obama’s second-term election campaign. There, she joined the campaign team as an intern. Later, she was promoted to Florida’s digital content director. There, she learned how to use social media to educate and organize voters.
Zara joined Uber after working in the Obama administration’s White House Office of Digital Strategy, where she helped draft ride-sharing legislation.
Zara took a slightly different path after working on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2016. She joined Vogue magazine as communications director (2017–18), where she honed her PR and image-building skills by working with influential figures in fashion, politics, art and entertainment.
In recent years, Zara has worked as a communications consultant with clients such as A24, Mariah Carey and Netflix.
Zohran Mamdani’s campaign strategy
Zohran’s campaign strategy was based on direct and unfiltered connections, especially with communities that traditional politics often ignore. She understood that social media popularity would only have a real impact if it was connected to people on the ground.
Zohran told the New York Times that the campaign was a “rigorous schedule.” In between TikTok and Instagram video shoots, Zohran Mamdani would speak to working-class people in different languages (such as Spanish and Hindi). Bangladeshi uncles and West African aunties noticed that someone was visiting their mosque. They are coming, and they are giving importance to their neighborhoods. These people have never voted in a party primary for mayor in their lives.
Nearly a million Muslims live in New York
The strategy was effective not only in positive outreach but also in handling attacks. When Cuomo made Islamophobic comments about Zohran’s supporters, Zara immediately condemned him.
“He tried to reach out to Muslims by saying, ‘Look, this bad Muslim.’ It’s a desperate tactic from someone who has nothing to say for Muslims,” Zara told CNN.
Zara worked with other key members, including Maya Handa, Tasha Van Auken and Faiza Ali.
Field Director Van Auken has brilliantly led a huge volunteer force on the campaign trail. In the party primary alone, they went to 1.6 million homes, speaking to 247,000 voters.
During the final election campaign on November 4, the number of volunteers grew to more than 90,000.
The campaign combined traditional organizational methods with the popularity of modern digital methods, much like Barack Obama’s early political career.
Zohra’s videos have been viewed billions of times online. Yet the campaign team said they were “not just a culture of asking for votes” but a “culture of communication.”