Zohran Mamdani backs new nuclear plants in New York State
The mayoral frontrunner has been quiet on the issue.
Zohran Mamdani has said little so far about energy in his campaign to become New York City’s next mayor. He’s expressed opposition to a gas pipeline, and support for clarifying the rules around the city’s landmark energy efficiency law. But, in a far cry from his efforts as a state legislator to champion changes to New York’s electricity mix, the Democratic nominee and frontrunner has stayed mostly quiet on the future of power plants, even as the city braces for potential blackouts next year amid a growing short of electrons on the grid that serves the five boroughs.
The man most directly responsible for that shortfall, as it would happen, is his chief rival, independent candidate Andrew Cuomo. The former governor oversaw the shutdown of the Indian Point nuclear plant just north of the city that provided the bulk of New York City’s electricity and almost all of its clean power until its final reactor closed in April 2021. Since then, the city’s grid has become less stable, prices have surged, and the share of electricity generated by fossil fuels soared to roughly 95%. Despite this, Cuomo has repeatedly defended his decision to close Indian Point — both in private settings, as I exclusively reported in this newsletter over the summer, and on the debate stage.
That makes what happened at tonight’s debate so notable. Asked by moderator Brian Lehrer whether he would support building new reactors in upstate New York, Mamdani answered: “I think it’s something worth exploring.”
“Is that a yes?” Cuomo interjected.
Mamdani cocked his head rightward to look at Cuomo, smiled, and responded: “Yeah.”
There’s good reason for his brevity. Mamdani’s coalition includes plenty of vocal opponents to nuclear power.
As I reported for New York Focus in July in a story about Governor Kathy Hochul’s plan for a new nuclear station backed by the state-owned New York Power Authority :
In New York City, the issue has received comparatively little attention. During the Democratic mayoral primary, the only candidates who focused on nuclear power were the two moderates: long-shot investor Whitney Tilson, who vowed to fight to reopen Indian Point and former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who defended his decision to shutter the facility. The winner, Zohran Mamdani — who fought to shut down oil- and gas-burning peaker plants as a state lawmaker from Astoria, Queens — has stayed mum on nuclear power, which is controversial within the Democratic Socialists of America. His campaign did not respond to multiple emails requesting comment.
But NY Renews, the progressive pro-renewables group with which Mamdani campaigned last year, came out against “the expansion or further investment in nuclear energy production in New York State due to its legacy of negative impacts on Indigenous communities, women, and children; concerns over the handling of radioactive materials throughout their lifecycle; and the exorbitant costs associated with this form of energy,” executive director Stephan Edel said in a statement.
Sure enough, Mamdani’s statement at tonight’s debate drew some blowback.
“Noooo,” progressive campaigner Melissa Byrne wrote in a post on X. “Keep weirdo abundos away from advising him.”
While left-wing green opposition to nuclear power has faded in recent years, it’s still there. The popular Brooklyn socialist publisher Verso Books just recently published a book-length diatribe, riddled with pseudoscientific claims, about why nuclear power is bad.
Considering that New York’s mayor doesn’t have a lot of power over state utility regulations, it’s easy to see why campaign poetry would avoid any stanzas on a topic that alienates vocal segments of the base. But when considering the governing prose, it’s worthy remembering that, in addition to the mayor’s bully pulpit, City Hall has buying power.
“There’s also a big reason a Mayor Zohran should be backing new nuclear at NYPA: he would be helping arrange contract renewal for NYC area public institutional electric customers of NYPA, currently about 1/5 of NYPA’s total sales statewide,” the pseudonymous left-wing energy writer Fred Stafford wrote on X tonight.
Watch the full debate here:
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Signing off this evening from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, where electricity is keeping the Verrazzano Bridge brightly lit.
Fabulous reporting--thank you!