In the charged global landscape of metropolitan politics, the recent electoral victories of Loyiso Masuku as the first female chairperson of the ANC in Johannesburg and of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City present a fascinating politics parallel. Both leaders, emerging from communities historically considered “outsiders” or migrants within their own cities, have secured top leadership roles in two of the world’s most iconic and complex urban centres. Their journeys reveal shared narratives of identity, strength and the ever-changing fabric of global cities.
Johannesburg, a city of about six-million people, has seen significant tensions over resources, citizenship and belonging, often directed against foreign nationals, particularly from other African countries, but sometimes also against internal migrants from neighbouring provinces. Masuku’s political identity is intrinsically linked to this narrative of internal migration, a journey millions of South Africans know intimately. Masuku was born and raised in the Eastern Cape and relocated to Johannesburg for her tertiary education and work.
Her victory as ANC chair in Johannesburg, where electoral and political strongholds are in the long-established townships, signals a shift and maturation in the conservative politics of tribalism and regionalism. Masuku is a dual pioneer; she has shattered a specific glass ceiling as the first woman to hold the position of ANC chairperson in Johannesburg, a position long dominated by male figures across the country. Her election is a necessary pushback on the sexism, regionalism and tribalism that consume ANC politics.
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On the other hand, Mamdani is a pioneer of a different, yet familiar, New York story. As the son of Ugandan-Indian immigrants and an outspoken democratic socialist, he has emphatically entered a political arena where power has traditionally flowed through older, more established networks. His 2020 election to the New York City Council was itself a breakthrough and his subsequent mayoral campaign positioned him as a trailblazer for a new, unapologetically left-wing and diasporic political agenda.
Without a doubt, he has paved the way for a new type of politics in the US. Johannesburg and New York, despite their contrasts, are archetypes of a 21st-century urban oxymoron: strong economic engines that also produce unparalleled, racialised inequality. This shared reality for both Masuku and Mamdani makes them some of the most influential politicians in the world. The impact of their leadership and decisions will reverberate not just in their city but also across the globe.
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