New York mayoral race tests Democratic Party’s stance on policing

2021-05-30T100524Z_1_LYNXNPEH4T04G_RTROPTP_4_USA-ELECTION-NEW-YORK-VOTERS-1200×800-1

After more than 20 people were shot during another bloody weekend in New York, Andrew Yang, a leading candidate to become the city’s next mayor, stood outside a Bronx housing project and called for an immediate increase in the number of police officers who investigate gun crimes and patrol subways.

The city, Yang said on May 27, “is failing us. We can do better.”

A year ago, protests over police brutality and racial injustice rocked cities across the country. Cries of “defund the police” and calls for reform echoed throughout the Democratic Party. But New York’s mayoral contest suggests a different political reality is taking hold among Democrats as urban areas nationwide dig out from the coronavirus pandemic.