November 4, 2025 marked the election of Zohran Mamdani as the 112th mayor of New York. That day also appeared to mark a significant increase in youth civic engagement: approximately 42% of registered voters aged 18–29 cast ballots — nearly quadruple the 11.1% turnout among the same age group in the 2021 mayoral election.
While many NYC teens are still too young to vote, they are paying closer attention to local politics than ever before. With the rapid increase in political discourse occurring on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit, political information can be easily accessed by people of any age.
To better understand how young New Yorkers are responding to the election results, I decided to speak with several NYC teenagers about their thoughts on Mamdani’s historic victory and whether they believed in a future in which teen opinions on political discourse are viewed as fundamental, rather than premature.
Milo Olim, a junior at Brooklyn Technical High School, has already pre-registered to vote, stating that it was “easier to just do it now.” When asked whether he believed teens’ political opinions, including those surrounding the mayoral election, were worth considering, he said, “Opinions should be qualified by the nature of the opinion, not by the person who has it. Lots of teenagers have interesting things to say, and lots of adults have more similar or generic opinions.” Ultimately, he said that “as long as the opinions come from serious places of experience and self-reflection, they’re worth discussing and having.”
Another student, Ashley Kim, a junior from LaGuardia High School, noticed something striking: “After and during the mayoral debates, more and more teens are being involved in politics and expressing their political opinions more freely online and at my school. For example, I saw an increasing amount of organized walkouts throughout the city in schools.” She also felt that because teens are the “future of our generation, our opinions about politics matter too.”
Her sentiment highlights why Mamdani’s influence carried well beyond the voting booth. Even without the ability to vote, NYC teens recognized the importance of city policy because it affected them in their day-to-day lives.
Sophia Esposito, a senior from Townsend Harris High School, leaves a message for future leaders and voters alike: “It’s not like we’re just sitting around and waiting for our turn to vote. When political decisions, anywhere, affect our own lives, our input isn’t just relevant, it’s necessary.”’
As the city enters a new political era, one trend is clear: the divide between youth and adult voters no longer dictates who shapes political dialogue. By calling for political views to be judged by their substance rather than the speaker’s age, younger New Yorkers are given the chance to establish themselves as active contributors to municipal politics.
Kimberly Koo is a junior at Brooklyn Technical High School. She is the founder of That Kid Can Write, a nonprofit that teaches creative writing to kids.
