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How affordability became the year’s defining US political issue

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Mr Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, speaking at a press conference in City Hall Park on Nov 3. When he takes office on Jan. 1, he will seek to move quickly to implement his affordability plans and respond to threats from President Donald Trump.

Mr Zohran Mamdani helped inject the word “affordability” into the political zeitgeist with his insurgent campaign for New York City mayor.

PHOTO: VINCENT ALBAN/ NYTIMES

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In this year’s elections in the US, Democrats across the political spectrum built their campaigns around a single word: affordability. It paid off.

Victories

by New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani

, Virginia’s Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger and New Jersey’s Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill on Nov 4 underscored how deeply the cost of living resonates with voters.

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