A diverse but younger-skewing crowd filled the Paramount Theater in Brooklyn with enthusiasm, dancing to hip hop and celebrating the socialist's win.

Mamdani, a democratic socialist in the state Assembly, will become New York City's first Muslim mayor and its first mayor of South Asian descent.

Zohran Mamdani, 34, is the projected winner of New York City's race for mayor in a contest that rallied young voters and sparked debate about the future direction of the Democratic Party.

NEW YORK (AP) — When he announced his run for mayor last October, Zohran Mamdani was a state lawmaker unknown to most New York City residents. But that was before the 34-year-old democratic socialist crashed the national political scene with a stunning upset over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in June’s Democratic primary.

In an election which saw record early voting turnout, Mamdani surged to victory Tuesday night with 49.6% of the vote, compared to 41.6% for independent Andrew Cuomo and 7.9% for Republican Curtis Sliwa when the race was called just after 9:30 p.m. Polls in New York closed at 9 p.m.

The election is widely seen as a test for the future of the Democratic Party — even with Andrew Cuomo running as an independent.

Around two million New Yorkers have cast ballots in the New York City mayoral election, the highest number since the 1969 mayor’s race, according to the city board of elections. The turnout is nearly double the 1.