The political shockwave from Zohran Mamdani’s victory in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary has ignited national backlash.

Critics warn of looming economic decline, growing government overreach, and even calls to invoke federal laws against communism.

However, New York City’s Democratic Socialists of America celebrated the result, writing, “This historic victory of working people over the oligarchs extends throughout the city and into the City Council.”

Mamdani ran on a campaign to “lower the cost of living for working class New Yorkers,” touting government-owned grocery stores and free bus rides, reported REASON Magazine.

Still, economists, business leaders, and conservative organizations have raised concerns about what Mamdani’s radical economic proposals could mean for the financial future of America’s largest city.

Adam Lehodey, a collegiate associate at the Manhattan Institute and current Columbia University senior, warned in City Journal that government-run grocery stores—one of Mamdani’s signature policies—are a logistical disaster in the making.

“New York lacks the operational knowledge and supply chain infrastructure needed to compete with large retailers,” Lehodey wrote. One bodega owner in Hell’s Kitchen put it bluntly: “He’s trying to be Amazon—but New York just doesn’t have that capacity at this point.”

Critics argue that Mamdani’s plan fails to address the real reasons for the collapse of private grocery stores in urban neighborhoods—namely, high crime and rampant retail theft.

Daniel Di Martino, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, compared Mamdani’s platform to the failed socialist models of Latin America.

“When I grew up in Venezuela, we had extensive corruption by government officials who awarded contracts to friends. They sold rotten or low-quality food and made people dependent on the state for survival,” Di Martino told Reason. “That’s what happens when government runs the food supply.”

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Online, outrage has intensified.

Some conservative voices have called for extreme measures, including invoking the Communist Control Act of 1954, a Cold War-era law that bars members of communist organizations from holding public office.

Others have argued that, due to Mamdani’s socialist positions and postings on X, the Community Control Act of 1954 should be enacted, which outlaws members of communist organizations from “serving in certain representative capacities, and for other purposes.”

The New York Young Republican Club even made a call to action.

President Trump has reacted to the news of Mamdani’s victory, posting on Truth Social: “It’s finally happened, the Democrats have crossed the line. Zohran Mamdani, a 100% Communist Lunatic, has just won the Dem Primary, and is on his way to becoming Mayor. We’ve had Radical Lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous. He looks TERRIBLE, his voice is grating, he’s not very smart, he’s got AOC+3, Dummies ALL, backing him, and even our Great Palestinian Senator, Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, is groveling over him. Yes, this is a big moment in the History of our Country!”

With Mamdani likely headed to City Hall, major businesses are watching closely.

As previously reported by The Dallas Express, financial institutions and retailers are already relocating to cities like Dallas from New York. The New York Stock Exchange has launched a new Texas-based exchange at Old Parkland, and companies like Goldman Sachs are quietly shifting operations out of Manhattan.

Now, with a socialist mayor on the horizon, the question many are asking is no longer if businesses will leave New York, but how fast.