The nomination of socialist Zohran Mamdani as the Democratic New York City mayoral candidate has turned the race into a battleground for the Republican Party to lodge a rare victory in urban America.

This contest is set against the backdrop of President Trump’s rebranding of the Republicans as the party of the working class, which has gained success nationwide but struggled in major cities.

Over two decades ago, as president of the Brooklyn Young Republican Club, I began to witness first-hand the steep climb Republicans face in securing victories. The club’s modest goal was to elect a few city council members from the outer boroughs. Today, while New York City’s political landscape remains heavily Democratic, Mamdani’s radical platform, which includes launching government-run supermarkets, has sparked fresh debate about Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa’s viability as a candidate who can appeal beyond traditional GOP voters.

Sliwa’s campaign and life align with the Republican Party’s Trump-led shift toward appealing to working-class voters, emphasizing law-and-order and grassroots community engagement. His decades leading the Guardian Angels have earned him credibility across party lines. He notably achieved record-breaking support among Asian American voters in his unsuccessful 2021 mayoral bid.

Yet some New York Republican leaders are pushing Sliwa to withdraw in favor of Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat with serious ethical problems who is running as an independent because he had no chance in his party’s primary. They argue that Sliwa’s roughly 30 percent support base from 2021 would shift to Adams and block Mamdani.

This effort reflects a broader tension within the Republican Party: short-term electoral pragmatism versus long-term party-building in urban strongholds. The smarter path would be to rally behind Sliwa and urge Adams — a Democrat plagued by trust issues — to step aside.

Sliwa’s support is rooted in genuine enthusiasm, not merely opposition to Mamdani. In contrast, Adams’s minimal backing, as WABC radio host Sid Rosenberg put it, hinges on his being “not as bad as” Mamdani. This weak position is not the formula for a winning campaign. Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s recent primary loss to Mamdani is only further evidence of that.

To force Sliwa out is to risk alienating his base, who may skip Election Day rather than support a Democrat. Instead, if Republicans unite behind Sliwa, it could position him to attract independents and moderate Democrats wary of Mamdani’s agenda, potentially finally fostering a real two-party system in New York City. Sliwa’s appeal to moderate Democrats far outweighs Adams’s ability to win over Republicans, given the latter’s baggage.

Republicans who want to push Sliwa aside should also recall his longstanding commitment to local grassroots Republican groups, which he has supported for many years to try to balance the political landscape in New York for the better. Indeed, I still remember him as a regular guest speaker at my Brooklyn Young Republican club meetings more than 20 years ago.

Nationally, the stakes are high. A strong Sliwa performance could serve as a bellwether for the GOP’s urban strategy, offering a blueprint for challenging Democratic dominance in cities. It could also bolster Republican prospects in the 2026 New York State gubernatorial race and other local contests.

Although Mamdani may still win, it would strengthen Republicans’ foothold in America’s largest city if they support Sliwa instead of settling for another Democrat. Republicans must rally behind a candidate who has connected with diverse voters throughout his storied life to seize this rare opportunity to reshape urban politics as Democrats veer dangerously toward socialism.

Bob Capano has been an adjunct political science instructor for over 20 years and was the district director for former Rep. Bob Turner (R-N.Y.).