A former Republican city council leader suggests that party members might want to back ex-Democratic governor Andrew Cuomo as he vies for mayor against Republican Curtis Sliwa. This move is seen as a strategy to counter the leading candidate from the Democratic Socialist Party, Zoran Mamdani.
Joe Borelli, the ex-Republican Congressional Minority Leader, expressed his thoughts on Fox News, noting, “I’m not particularly fond of Andrew Cuomo, but I wouldn’t want to waste my vote either.”
Borelli posed an interesting question: “Would you prefer someone who accelerates socialism, or someone who occasionally applies the brakes?” It’s a valid point, really, about choosing the lesser of two evils. He commented on Sliwa, saying, “If you’re planning to waste your vote on Curtis Sliwa, I can’t really assist you.”
Mamdani previously beat Cuomo in the Democratic primary, and the former governor is now running as an independent under the “Fight and Deliver” banner for the election on November 4.
Cuomo is lagging significantly behind Mamdani, and Sliwa is further complicating things by siphoning votes away from him, which impacts Mamdani’s campaign as well.
Borelli recalled, “Mr. Sliwa managed to secure half of the votes during his previous mayoral run in 2021. And frankly, half of those votes represented a significant loss.”
Despite Cuomo’s flaws—Borelli called him an “incompetent and dishonest candidate”—he argued that it shouldn’t mean relinquishing votes to the Republican Party. “People have options,” Borelli remarked, sharing a bit about his own background as Staten Island’s City Councilman and his recent shift to private lobbying after leaving public office earlier this year.
Sliwa’s campaign chose not to provide any comments regarding the situation.
