The ‘new' Andrew Cuomo hits the streets of NYC: Will it be enough?
Cuomo vowed to switch up his approach to the race when he announced on July 14 he was staying in the race as an independent. He conceded he 'played it safe' in the primary against Zohran Mamdani and promised to 'meet voters where they are' and be more aggressive in his attacks.
Since the re-launch, Cuomo's campaign has posted footage of the ex-governor visiting housing complexes in the Bronx and Queens, East New York and Brownsville, Staten Island and the Upper West Side – gravitating toward spots Cuomo either won or in which he was competitive in the primary.
'In the early stages of the general election, it seems like he is spending his candidate time in similar areas that his campaign prioritized in the primary,' Democratic strategist Trip Yang said.
Yang noted that neighborhoods with more moderate primary voters likely will also have more moderate general election voters — a key segment of the electorate for Cuomo. Places that turned out well for Cuomo in June are somewhat likely to turn out for him in November, too, Yang noted.
But the strategist said it seems Cuomo is 'playing it somewhat safe' by visiting places where he did relatively well. Cuomo has shied away from places like Williamsburg, Astoria and Park Slope, where Mamdani beat him by wide margins and the ex-gov is unlikely to break through, especially running on an independent line.
'Are we going to [Democratic Socialists of America] clubhouses? No,' Rich Azzopardi, Cuomo's spokesman, told the Daily News.
'This is a new campaign and we'll be everywhere and talking to everybody,' Azzopardi added. 'Some of the areas we've been in we did well in in the primary, some we came up short, but in all cases we believe there's room to improve especially with a general electorate and more eyes on the race as we head toward November.'
The campaign noted that, in total, Cuomo has been in sixteen neighborhoods since his re-launch, including Midtown, Washington Heights and Hollis, Queens, and plans to visit Jackson Heights, East Harlem and Gowanus over the weekend.
The candidate, who was criticized for his 'rose garden' strategy in the primary, has been a bit more accessible to the press so far in his general run, doing a number of one-on-one interviews with reporters.
Cuomo said on Wednesday that he's banking on a 'different audience' in the November election.
'It's a different electorate,' he said on CNBC. 'It's bigger, it's more moderate. It's more Queens, outer borough. You have independents, you have Republicans voting. So it's a totally different ball game in the general.'
The campaign also appears to be taking taken a cue from Mamdani, posting more casual, conversational videos of the ex-governor. Mamdani's ground outreach effort, paired with an aggressive social media presence, is widely credited as helping spread his affordability-centric messaging.
Cuomo is seen in the videos shaking hands with locals on the street, visiting senior centers and ordering food at local restaurants in places like Co-op City, where he beat Mamdani by over 45 points, and Lefrak City, where he won by over 30 points.
'Cuomo looks like he's had a couple more sips of coffee but it may not be strong enough,' Yang said of the campaign's efforts to switch things up.
Cuomo is facing an array of challenges.
Mamdani won the primary by 13 points in an upset victory that took the political establishment and wealthy donor class largely by surprise. Unions, including those that backed Cuomo in the primary, and powerful politicians like Rep. Adriano Espaillat have endorsed him in recent weeks.
Cuomo is also battling incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, with both candidates staking out more moderate, business-friendly positions than Mamdani.
Some donors who backed Cuomo in the primary are gravitating to Adams as the best bet at defeating the democratic socialist Mamdani. Adams has seen a surge in fundraising dollars and collected the endorsements of various law enforcement unions.
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