Andrew Cuomo aims to replace New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) as a top centrist candidate in the city's upcoming elections, appealing to voter concerns about crime and highlighting Adams' controversy.
Cuomo eventually joined the mayoral race a week ago after a few months of accumulation, and quickly flew to the front of the pack as an early front runner. Many other candidates have been in the race for several months, but most have only been single- or low double-digit numbers on the poll.
Cuomo, a former New York governor, focused his message when New York City voters expressed unease over quality of life and anger over the allegations that Adams had engaged in a Quid Pro with the Trump administration over immigration.
“It's not just this big, epic vision,” said John Linesch, a Democratic strategist who supports Cuomo. “It also says, “I'm capable and I know how to pull the levers of government. I'm involving the private sector, encouraging the private sector to achieve results that answer the crisis New Yorkers are experiencing.”
Cuomo declared as the city was in a “crisis” and launched a political comeback attempt to require “effective leadership” to ensure that the government works. And he remained stable in that message as he systematically rolled out his campaign last week.
He started the campaign in 17 and a half minutes. video Previously oversaw the New York City Homeless Committee and detailed his political experience as secretary of housing and urban development, state attorney general and governor. He raised the minimum wage, added gun control laws, approved same-sex marriage, protected abortion rights, and touted as a leader in the implementation of numerous major infrastructure projects.
Reinish says Cuomo can make a difference by reminding people of his record, and can remind him of his success as governor for over a decade. Cuomo has built a medium reputation, but he used the term “progressive” to describe his past achievements, referring to over a half dozen in the video.
However, analysts say the race is primarily about who can prove themselves as an effective leader who can achieve their goals and keep the city safe, and at least one poll suggests that this dynamic can give Cuomo an advantage.
Voting from Gotham Polling & Analytics release Last month, Cuomo clearly led the first round of ranked voting matchups, winning the final round, pulling 51% to city director Brad Lander and 18% to state legislator Zohran Mamdani.
The top three qualities respondents wanted from their mayor were strong ethical standards, the ability to manage complex crises and experience with proven leadership. The majority said they view Cuomo as a tough leader who can get things done or someone who has restructured their infrastructure in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.
Cuomo's best performance was performed at age 50 and above. He is also the one who cares most about public safety and said it is the most effective in primary elections.
“These are definitely known in the Cuomo campaign,” he said. “This is certainly not his first time in politics, but it's clear that he will focus on those issues.”
Oka reached out to Cuomo's campaign for comments.
The state of crime in New York is complex, with complex statistics telling stories of some positive and negative trends. Adams tried to highlight success, but he, Cuomo and other candidates widely acknowledge the fear of city crime.
The candidates are aware of the fear, but they have taken different approaches to how to deal with it. Mamdani and state Sen. Jessica Ramos are running on a more left-wing platform, but scaling Supports the role of police discovery Alternatives in certain cases.
State Senator Zellner Miley, former Secretary Scott Stringer and Lander all previously Lean It is on the left side of police and criminal justice as it expresses support for cutting police funds in 2020.
That leaves Adams and Cuomo in a more consistently milder lane, potentially competing for the same type of voters, but Adams faces major stumblings of ethical questions and concerns about independence from Trump.
“Eric Adams was the kind of man he refused. [‘defund the police’] From day one,” said the New York Democrat. “He appealed to moderates, clearly to the black and brown community, but in terms of the actual message and what people are offering… 2021 is not like 2025.”
Democrats pointed out that many officials who supported Cuomo, including former state director Carl McCall, Rep. Richie Torres (DN.Y.), and former Bronx Rose President Reuben Diaz Jr., were black or brown. These were communities that were important parts of Adams' victory four years ago.
They said Cuomo also benefits from his charisma and feels that he is a candidate who “shaking” the system even if other candidates have similar proposals to him. Without him in the race, none of the other candidates for Adam would have broken a few months after they came in.
“People often have a very strong opinion of him,” they said. “But what's interesting is… Sometimes it's beyond what it exists, and it's people who just know him. I can't say how many times I've heard people say, he's a real asshole, but I think that's what we need.”
But pollers warn him that even if he shows him clearly ahead, he still has to find a way to earn the profits to win, which can be difficult.
Mary Snow, assistant director of the Kinnipiac University poll, said Cuomo had led 20 points more than his closest competitor in a poll released Wednesday, but 16% who said they were still able to swing the race.
“It really shows that candidates have the opportunity to grow their support,” she said. “And the big question is how it leads to the race. This primary is only three months away, so we don't have time.”
Graves said Cuomo's goal should at least be to “soft” negative feelings about him and willingly place them as a second or third option in the vote ranked with more voters. Cuomo has a big lead in the first round in Gotham's polls, but he sees how few people have named him the second option.
“If you can't vote for them as the first one, then at least you can put them in the second place, that's about the same,” he said.
And Cuomo may be troubled by continuing to ask questions about the controversy that led to his resignation as governor, including handling nursing homes during the pandemic and several accusations of sexual misconduct against him. He appears to admit “mistakes” during the start of the campaign, saying he has learned from them and hoping to show that he is a better person for it.
He then piloted his statement towards his capabilities.
“But I promise you this, I know what I need to do, and I know how to do it, and I give everything to get the job done – and it's done,” he said.
Reinish said Cuomo's focus should be on his record and his vision, but he should be prepared for the questions he faces.
“There are questions people still have and you answer them calmly, thoughtfully, carefully. I think that's exactly what he's trying to do,” he said.
