Andrew Cuomo makes NYC mayoral run official, says he will stay in the race as an independent
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday that he's staying in the New York City mayoral race as an independent candidate, saying he is "in it to win it."
But there's an asterisk.
Cuomo wants the other independents, including Mayor Eric Adams, to agree that there should be only one independent candidate in the race to challenge Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, and that that candidate should be decided by polling in mid-September.
Adams replied to Cuomo's suggestion about consolidating the independents in the race based around September polling with what might, in some circles, be regarded as a one finger salute.
"New Yorkers are not dumb. I keep telling people New Yorkers have five fingers. They love the middle one the most," Adams said.
Cuomo's announcement posted on social media
Cuomo is running as an independent on the "Fight and Deliver" party line.
"Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that the Democratic primary did not go the way I had hoped," he said in a video announcing his plan to stay in the race.
Sources tell CBS News New York he is planning to run a different kind of campaign this time around, and his social media video reflects it. Gone are the suits, ties and the Rose Garden strategy that helped him keep his distance from average New Yorkers.
Cuomo thanked the supporters who voted for him, and said "I am truly sorry that I let you down." He said he learned from his grandfather that when you're knocked down, you learn the lesson and get back up.
"The fight to save our city isn't over. Only 13% of New Yorkers voted in the June primary. The general election is in November and I am in it to win it," Cuomo said. "Every day I'm going to be hitting the streets, meeting you where you are. To hear the good and the bad, problems and solutions, because for the next few months it's my responsibility to earn your vote."
Cuomo said Mamdani "offers slick slogans but no real solutions." He also seemed to adopt the affordability arguments that helped fuel Mamdani's come-from-behind victory.
"We need a city with lower rents, safer streets, where buying your first home is once again possible, where child care won't bankrupt you. That's the New York City we know. That's the one that is still possible," Cuomo said. "You deserve a mayor with the experience and ideas to make it happen again, and the guts to take on anyone who stands in the way."
Cuomo's social media video made no mention of his proposal to the other independent challengers.
Mamdani picks up another endorsement
Mamdani, meanwhile, picked up another labor endorsement, this time from the American Federation of Musicians.
He said his primary victory showed New Yorkers were hungry for a different kind of politics.
"I understand that it is difficult for the former governor to come to terms with that, because it is a repudiation of the kind of politics he has practiced and he has known for so many years," Mamdani said.
Adams also said Cuomo had his shot in the primary.
"Andrew is a double digit loser in the primary," the mayor said. "He spent [millions] to get his message out. New York has heard it. He did not sell it."
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 4.
