Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist, won the mayoral primary in New York City on the same message Trump won on in 2024: things cost too much and we need to get prices down.

Trump, of course, has broken that promise. He keeps us distracted with ICE raids, Iran bombs, Qatari jets, Trump bitcoins and Trump cellphones – anything but what he said he’d do.

Mamdani won with a positive and optimistic campaign, an army of enthusiastic volunteers, and social media that featured his energetic, engaging personality. You can see all that in his victory speech here.

He appealed to people’s hopes. Trump appeals to their fears.

Mamdani’s opponents scream “socialist!”

They also call Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Obamacare “socialist.”

If that’s socialism, sign me up.

Throughout his campaign, Mamdani focused relentlessly on one message: “Every politician says New York is the greatest city on the globe. But what good is that if no one can afford to live here?”

Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, who could be a strong presidential candidate in 2028, delivered a similar message in a recent speech.

She proposed an “economic war plan” with five parts: creating good-paying jobs, modernizing education to prepare for future economies, making housing affordable through increased construction, pursuing an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy to lower costs and reforming healthcare by introducing a public option and tackling drug pricing.

The most powerful weapon in politics is a positive message.

Democrats didn’t have one in 2024. We must have it in 2026 and 2028.