After over a yr of hypothesis and rumors, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo formally launched his marketing campaign for New York Metropolis mayor on Saturday — instantly shaking up a Democratic main race thus far outlined by uncertainty.
In a 17-minute video posted on his web site, the brash ex-governor jumped again into the fray almost 4 years after resigning from workplace amid almost a dozen accusations of sexual harassment, which he denies.
“We know that today, our New York City is in trouble,” Cuomo mentioned, declaring the rise in avenue homelessness, public anxiousness over subway crime, empty storefronts and different points in rolling out a reasonable progressive imaginative and prescient for the Huge Apple.
“The city just feels threatening, out of control and in crisis,” he added. “These conditions exist not as an act of God, but rather as an act of our political leaders — or, more precisely, the lack of intelligent action by our political leaders.”
Though Cuomo has principally remained quiet since his resignation, murmurs of his need to make a political comeback have circulated for properly over a yr.
Cuomo enters the race because the presumed frontrunner after main in a string of public polls over the previous couple of months and receiving early backing from pols, together with Bronx Rep. Ritchie Torres (D) and former state Comptroller Carl McCall — whom he as soon as ran towards in a bitter 2002 Democratic gubernatorial main.
The previous governor leaned in on his “historic progressive accomplishments” throughout his decade-long run as governor, akin to elevating the minimal wage, enacting robust gun violence legal guidelines, passing marriage equality, creating paid household lead, enshrining reproductive rights into state regulation, and producing quite a few public works initiatives from the reconstruction of LaGuardia Airport to the Second Avenue Subway.
“We showed that government can actually work and get things done,” he mentioned.
Cuomo outlined what he referred to as a “bold action plan to save our city” centered largely on public security, together with addressing avenue homelessness by getting assets to severely mentally in poor health homeless people. He additionally pushed for altering the general public angle towards regulation enforcement and including extra cops and specialised items.
“We must also restore a relationship of mutual trust and respect between the police and the community,” he mentioned. “The police have been devalued, and today, people don’t even want to apply to be police officers. That must change.”
He additional referred to as for a “significant presence of real police by the city and state” inside the subway system “to make our subways safe 24 hours a day.” He additionally referred to as for change to the town’s e-bike legal guidelines to finish what he referred to as “chaos” on the sidewalks and streets.
Whereas saying that he hoped President Trump can be a accomplice with the town, he wouldn’t be afraid to battle for the town’s greatest pursuits.
“My philosophy as an elected official is simple: I work for you — not the politicians or special interests,” Cuomo mentioned. “I work as hard as you do, 24/7. I know what needs to be done, and I know how to do it. Experience matters.”
What lies forward
Cuomo may current an almost insurmountable problem for Mayor Eric Adams, as the 2 centrist Democrats have overlapping bases of assist. He presents himself as a reliable supervisor who can “save” the 5 boroughs from the disaster that has developed beneath Adams’ scandal-ridden administration.
The previous governor additionally has a powerful probability of profitable over the town’s core energy gamers, together with its enterprise group and high labor unions, lots of whom backed Adams in 2021.
Adams’ marketing campaign didn’t instantly touch upon Cuomo’s marketing campaign launch.
However Cuomo will certainly face an onslaught from the remainder of the first subject over his 11-year tenure as governor and the scandals that introduced his administration down.
The opposite candidates have already begun attacking Cuomo over the a number of allegations of sexual misconduct, many from girls who labored inside state authorities, that led to his resignation. The accusations, which have been discovered credible in an investigation performed by state Lawyer Basic Letitia James, included undesirable sexual feedback and call.
Cuomo’s workforce has used 5 district attorneys’ declining to criminally cost him over the allegations and counts getting dropped from civil fits arising from them to color James’ report as flawed and biased.
Cuomo can also be more likely to face criticism over his March 2020 order that COVID-19 sufferers popping out of hospitals to be re-admitted to nursing houses and allegations that he purposefully undercounted the variety of nursing dwelling deaths throughout the state. In a September Congressional listening to, Cuomo blamed New York’s excessive COVID-19 nursing dwelling dying rely on the primary Trump administration’s lack of management fairly than his personal selections.
The previous governor didn’t shrink back from the well being disaster in his marketing campaign announcement Saturday.
“We had it first and worst, with no warning. We were on our own, and we were pushed to our limits, but we got through it together — and we led the nation,” he mentioned.
Cuomo additionally acknowledged that he made his share of errors throughout his political life however that he discovered from them.
“Did I make mistakes? Some painfully, definitely,” he mentioned. “And I believe that I learned from them and I am a better person for it. And I hope to show you that every day.”
The potential impression on the race
Cuomo enters the race as Adams’ possibilities of profitable the Democratic main seem ever slimmer amid the a number of crises engulfing his mayoralty.
Adams hit a brand new political low after President Trump’s Justice Division moved to drop his federal corruption fees earlier this month. The DOJ needs the case dismissed with out prejudice, that means it will probably carry the costs again at any time, main many to imagine that Adams is now beholden to Trump.
Nonetheless, Adams’ legal professional, Alex Spiro, argued earlier this week that the case needs to be dismissed with prejudice.
Including gasoline to the fireplace have been accusations by former Manhattan US Lawyer Danielle Sassoon that Adams’ authorized workforce traded his cooperation with implementing Trump’s immigration insurance policies for dismissing the costs. Each the DOJ and Adams’ legal professional, Alex Spiro, have denied that any quid professional quo happened.
Sassoon’s letter, together with the resignations of 4 deputy mayors, fueled a recent wave of requires Adams to resign or be faraway from workplace by Gov. Kathy Hochul. Adams has fiercely resisted the calls, and Hochul mentioned she is not going to take away him “at this time.”
But, Adams has disregarded Cuomo’s early polling benefit and, for essentially the most half, prevented taking photographs on the early frontrunner. As a substitute, he has pointed to his capacity to overhaul Andrew Yang within the 2021 mayor’s race, regardless of Yang’s early lead within the polls.
Response
Inside moments of Cuomo leaping into the race, different candidates within the Democratic main have been fast to reply with loads of vitriol towards the latest entrant within the race.
Former Metropolis Comptroller Scott Stringer alleged that Cuomo “is officially running to lead the city he repeatedly threw under the bus as governor,” and that “he spent years treating New York City like his personal punching bag — slashing MTA funding and wrecking the subway while funneling money to upstate ski resorts, and trying to cut billions in funding for public school kids and Medicaid for city residents.”
“And now he wants New Yorkers to rehabilitate his reputation? Give me a break,” Stringer mentioned. “Voters will see right through his desperate attempt at a comeback—and in June, they’ll send him packing back to Westchester.”
Present Metropolis Comptroller Brad Lander charged Cuomo “is for himself and only himself, and is hoping New Yorkers will forget his disastrous record for our city of endless scandals, destroying the subway, and cutting basic services.”
Brooklyn state Sen. Zellnor Myrie accused the previous governor of being silent whereas “Donald Trump wages an all-out war on New Yorkers” as he has not publicly commented on Trump’s administration because it took workplace in late January.
“Cuomo is no friend to New York City — causing incredible harm as governor and encouraging corruption,” Myrie mentioned. “We deserve better than this. It’s time to turn the page on the politics of the past.”
Queens state Sen. Jessica Ramos, in the meantime, supplied a welcome assertion dripping in sarcasm, “thanking” Cuomo “for finally launching your vanity comeback tour,” and charging that the first contributors “can now go back to discussing the issues that matter to New Yorkers, like fixing the housing crisis you stoked, cleaning the streets you ignored, and making NYC affordable for working families.”
“If New Yorkers want a corrupt bully with a record of alleged sexual misconduct, supporting Republicans, selling out to developers, and exacerbating crises, they can just stick with the current mayor,” Ramos added.
Author : newyork-news
Publish date : 2025-03-01 18:53:12
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