AILSA CHANG, HOST:
A wave of progressive candidates across the country won big last night. Providence, Rhode Island, elected a new mayor, the youngest in the city's history. His name is David Morales. He identifies as a Democratic socialist, and he beat an incumbent Democrat in the primary, vowing to fight for working people and change the status quo. From Ocean State Media, David Wright reports.
DAVID WRIGHT, BYLINE: As he stepped up to the microphone to claim victory last night, David Morales suddenly jumped off the stage like a wrestler leaping from the turnbuckle - in this case, to hug a supporter. Then Morales got down to business.
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DAVID MORALES: We have watched the results roll in, and it has been absolutely clear that across Rhode Island and right here in our capital city of Providence, our neighbors voted overwhelmingly for the change that they deserve.
WRIGHT: At age 28, Morales is six years younger than the politician with whom he's most often compared, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
MORALES: I believe that there's a lot of similar characteristics - the fact that we're both Democratic socialists that are unapologetic about taking on corporate interests to serve the needs of working people.
WRIGHT: Do you like what he's doing in New York?
MORALES: I've admired from afar.
WRIGHT: The feeling seems to be mutual. At a recent press conference, Mamdani spoke about Morales.
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ZOHRAN MAMDANI: One of the central issues in his race was around rent stabilization and around the importance of delivering on affordability, not just as a goal but as a result. And his constituents agreed with exactly that.
WRIGHT: Morales vows to address concerns many voters have raised this election cycle - the high cost of housing and healthcare, underperforming schools and aggressive immigration enforcement. He won more than 80% of the vote. He landed the mayor's office having served three terms in the state legislature, all the while competing as an amateur wrestler.
MORALES: And I'm proud of having a mean elbow coming off the top rope.
WRIGHT: (Laughter).
But city hall is a very different ring.
You were the rebel coming up, and now you're the establishment. Does that scare you?
MORALES: (Laughter) Oh, what is the saying that they say, right? "You live long enough to see yourself become the villain," quote-unquote. But no, I mean, I think, more than anything else, what we have been able to demonstrate is that our neighbors were tired of the status quo and that they want to see change.
WRIGHT: Change is what David Morales hopes to deliver. For NPR News, I'm David Wright in Providence.
(SOUNDBITE OF AYANNA SONG, "GIRLFRIEND") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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