Andrew Cuomo launches his rebrand: More vertical videos and selfies, less ‘being nice'
In the 10 days since announcing he would pursue an independent bid for New York City mayor, Cuomo has acknowledged the mistakes that led to his stunning Democratic primary loss to state Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. And he is trying to prove he can turn the race around before November by rebooting his campaign.
Cuomo is trying to demonstrate that he's going to be a different candidate as he hopes to keep donors on board and appeal to Democrats and independents who might be uncomfortable with backing Mamdani, a democratic socialist.
Some of his changes are easy to spot. Others are subtler.
Cuomo was hard to find in the primary, often dodging reporters who wanted to ask about the sexual harassment allegations and complaints about his handling of Covid-19 that preceded his resignation as governor.
Now, he's doing on one-on-one interviews with the city's press corps at traditional campaign spots like subway stations. He's also sitting for podcast interviews where he's explaining what he thinks he did wrong in the primary.
Long known for his brash style, short temper and bullying tactics, Cuomo said he had adopted a 'softer' approach during the primary campaign that did not work.
'So much for being nice, that's what I say,' Cuomo told Stephen A. Smith during a recent podcast interview.
Cuomo said he'll bring back more of his old style. Perhaps most importantly, he said, he'll call out what he describes as unrealistic ideas from Mamdani, who has proposed freezing hikes on rent-controlled apartments, opening city-run grocery stores and making public buses free.
'Those slick slogans that sound good – everything free. Free buses, free education, free food, everything free. BS, everything is free? If it sounds too good to be true, it isn't.' Cuomo told Smith.
Cuomo did attack Mamdani's ideas as unrealistic during their primary debates.
Cuomo has a lifelong history with Democratic politics. He is a son of Gov. Mario Cuomo, who joined President Bill Clinton's Cabinet before being elected New York attorney general and then governor three times.
'Mamdani is on the Democratic line but he's a socialist. I'm on the independent line but I am a Democrat. The politics nowadays are topsy-turvy; that's what we're seeing in this election,' Cuomo said on Smith's podcast.
It will be an uphill battle given the city's overwhelming number of Democratic voter registrations and Mamdani's popularity among young New Yorkers who were central to his candidacy.
Despite having a significant share of the establishment support that has started to line up behind Mamdani, Cuomo is now dismissing that same establishment as reactionary.
'A lot of the voters are knee-jerk; 'I vote for the Democrat.' A lot of the Democratic institutions, the unions, etc., they just knee-jerk go with the Democrat,' Cuomo told Smith.
Notably, some key establishment Democrats have not endorsed Mamdani, including Gov. Kathy Hochul, Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who represents a Brooklyn district.
After Cuomo said he would 'hit the streets' and meet voters 'where they are' in his campaign relaunch video, more footage has popped up on his campaign feeds. There is even a hint of trial and error. A recent video was quickly panned in the comments and subsequently reposted by Mamdani supporter accounts who mocked the audio quality of the video because it drowned out Cuomo's voice.
Newer videos show Cuomo wearing a wireless microphone as he makes small talk and asks voters what their concerns are.
The videos specifically show him speaking with New Yorkers inside restaurants and diners, chatting with a butcher on the Upper West Side, walking the streets of Staten Island by way of the Staten Island ferry, sampling prosciutto, visiting senior centers and the inside of restaurant kitchens.
The choices of people in the video seem intentional. So far, the videos showcase Cuomo before his target voters – upper middle class, White ethnic New Yorkers in parts of Manhattan and Staten Island, as well as older Black voters.
Great day in the Bronx talking to New Yorkers about the housing crisis and how we can work to make the City more affordable for all pic.twitter.com/BZx5JC1BP5 'We're talking about our problems; one of the big ones is affordable housing,' Cuomo says in a video as he walks around Co-Op City in the Bronx. The sprawling, 15,000-unit housing cooperative is the largest in the nation and home to mostly Black New Yorkers.
Mamdani's team – credited by both allies and enemies for its use of social media – has brushed off what it sees as an attempt at mimicry.
'We got him making man on the street videos with a guy in carhartt. By next week, he'll be sipping adeni chai and eating khaliat al nahl,' the campaign wrote in a post on X. (Adeni chai is Yemeni milk tea; khaliat al nahl is an Arab pastry.)
Cuomo previously tried to present himself as the only leader who could protect the city during President Donald Trump's second term in office.
Now, as he looks to November and trying to draw conservatives to his independent bid, that message appears to be in the back seat. Instead, Cuomo has focused his attacks on incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, describing him as 'unelectable,' and on Mamdani, casting his potential mayoralty as a time that will ruin New York.
'It would be devastating to New York City, and it would take a decade to recover,' Cuomo told Smith.
While Cuomo attacks Adams, he is also pushing a proposal that would require any independent and the Republican nominee to drop out by September and endorse whoever is polling highest.
So far, Adams and GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa have refused that idea, setting up a split contest that could benefit Mamdani by dividing his opposition.
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