In a striking eleventh-hour move that underscores how tight the New York City mayoral race has become, multiple highly credible sources tell YWN that Democratic Socialist frontrunner Zohran Mamdani reached out Monday to the heads of several major Jewish organizations across the city, urgently requesting to tour their facilities and stage photo-op visits on the eve of Election Day.

The outreach, described by insiders as a “last-minute scramble,” comes just hours after a new AtlasIntel poll — from the nation’s most accurate pollster in 2024 — showed Mamdani’s once-comfortable lead over Andrew Cuomo collapsing to just 4.5 points, placing the race well within striking distance.

According to multiple sources familiar with the calls, every single organization Mamdani contacted turned him down, citing the timing of the request and the appearance that such visits could be construed as a political endorsement.

The attempted outreach marks a dramatic shift for Mamdani, who has faced deep skepticism and criticism from Jewish communities throughout the campaign over his past rhetoric on Israel and policing. His eleventh-hour overtures suggest growing alarm within his campaign as Cuomo surges among moderate and Orthodox Jewish voters, many of whom have shifted toward the former governor in recent weeks.

Even more telling, the poll finds that in a two-way race excluding Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, Cuomo would defeat Mamdani outright — 49.7% to 44.1%.

Political observers say that data — paired with Mamdani’s frantic last-minute outreach — is a clear sign of a campaign under pressure.

Jewish voters, particularly in Brooklyn and Queens, are expected to play a decisive role in Tuesday’s outcome. While Mamdani has tried to emphasize inclusivity in recent weeks, his past alignment with anti-Israel activists and calls to defund NYPD units that monitor terror threats have alienated many mainstream Jewish leaders.

Meanwhile, Cuomo — running as an independent — has aggressively courted Orthodox and traditional Jewish communities, recently visiting neighborhoods in Borough Park, Flatbush, and Forest Hills.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)