It wasn’t supposed to be this way for the left in New York. Early on in the race, City Comptroller Scott Stringer was right alongside Adams and Yang at the top of the polls and in fundraising. Stringer had firmly positioned himself as the race’s leading progressive with the support of the city’s most prominent left-leaning lawmakers, including many of Ocasio-Cortez’s allies in Albany and Washington. His pitch to voters includes a focus on climate change and a sweeping universal affordable-housing plan. But just as Stringer was gaining momentum in late April, a former unpaid worker accused him of sexual misconduct. The allegation—despite several clear inconsistencies—caused him to hemorrhage progressive endorsers, many of whom have been vocal advocates for women critics of sexual harassment in the political sphere. A second woman came forward earlier this month to accuse Stringer of “sexual harassment and making unwanted advances” when she worked at a bar he operated nearly 30 years ago. Stringer vehemently denied the first accusation and dismissed the second as part of “a long-ago chapter in my life from the early 1990s” that “was all a bit of a mess.” The situation raises questions about asymmetrical warfare. Republicans—even evangelicals—stayed largely united behind President Donald Trump as he faced a slew of allegations of sexual assault. And New York’s Democratic governor, Andrew Cuomo (another moderate villain in the state’s progressive circles), has not only declined to step aside but maintained support among many centrist allies after racking up a long list of accusers.