ROOKE: Mamdani Pulled Debate-Night Move Straight Out Of Trump’s Playbook

Democratic Socialist New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani invited seven guests to the Wednesday debate against his opponents, former Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican activist Curtis Sliwa.

Each of Mamdani’s guests was seemingly picked to symbolize failures in Cuomo’s New York gubernatorial record, including arguably the most notable invitee, Charlotte Bennett, a former aide to Cuomo and the first woman to publicly accuse him of sexual harassment in 2021.

During a direct-question segment, Mamdani turned the spotlight on Bennett’s appearance in the audience to press Cuomo on the sexual harassment allegations from Bennett and other women. Cuomo denied the claims but avoided engaging Bennett directly, which increased the awkwardness.

Mamdani’s Bennett appearance directly echoes a strategy employed by President Donald Trump ahead of the second debate against Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign. Trump famously held a press conference with women who accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual assault or harassment: Juanita Broaddrick (who accused Bill Clinton of rape in 1978), Kathleen Willey (who claimed Bill Clinton groped her in 1993), Paula Jones (who sued Bill Clinton for sexual harassment in 1994), and Kathy Shelton (a rape victim whose assailant was defended by Hillary Clinton as a lawyer in 1975). (Sign up for Mary Rooke’s weekly newsletter here!)

He also invited these women to sit in the debate audience and referenced their accusations to press Hillary Clinton on her supposed hypocrisy on women’s issues. It was highly effective for Trump, who was trying to deflect from the infamous leaked audio of him talking inappropriately about women. It reminded the American people that while he is no saint the Clintons have their fair share of sexualized trouble.

While Mamdani isn’t facing sexual allegations, his move was likely a deflection from the lack of policy depth or qualified experience, which Cuomo highlighted during the debate.

BREAKING: Andrew Cuomo calls out Zohran Mamdani:

“You’ve never had a job. You’ve never accomplished anything. You never proposed a bill in NY senate to fix anything. You had the worst attendance. You never even showed up. Shame on you!” pic.twitter.com/Ynf6LT0yMg

— Leading Report (@LeadingReport) October 23, 2025

Similar to Trump and Clinton, Mamdani’s play will likely be just as effective, although it probably wasn’t necessary. Mamdani is enjoying a considerable lead in the polls. Polling aggregates and recent surveys show Mamdani maintaining a consistent double-digit lead in the three-way race, with his support hovering around 43-52 percent.

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