Billionaire former Mayor Mike Bloomberg has poured $1.5 million into former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s bid to revive the mayoral race, and Rep. Mike Lawler and Rep. Tom Suozzi have endorsed Mr. Cuomo.
New York mayoral candidates face off in final debate
Andrew Cuomo, Zoran Mamdani and Curtis Sliwa clashed over President Trump, housing, crime and sexual harassment allegations.
NEW YORK – Centrists are making a last-ditch effort to block Democratic candidate Zoran Mamdani’s path to becoming New York mayor.
Mike Bloomberg, a three-term former mayor and businessman with a net worth of $109.4 billion, has become the latest person to try to boost former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s odds as an independent candidate to follow Democratic Socialist Mamdani ahead of the Nov. 4 election.
Bloomberg donated $1.5 million to a pro-Cuomo super PAC on Oct. 29, according to filings with the state Board of Elections. On the same day, two members of Congress from New York’s purple suburbs rallied around Mr. Cuomo.
Lower Hudson Valley Republican Rep. Mike Lawler once called Cuomo a “lying sociopath.” He now says Mr. Cuomo is “the lesser of two evils.” Roller represents a battleground area with many people commuting into the city.
“At the end of the day, it’s not about the party,” Lawler said on the conservative talk radio show “Sid and Friends in the Morning,” appearing to echo Cuomo’s Islamophobic comments about Mamdani a week ago.
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.), who represents Queens and parts of Long Island, declared himself a “democratic capitalist” and rejected Mr. Mamdani’s self-identification as a democratic socialist. Mr. Suozzi again endorsed Mr. Cuomo.
Regarding X, Mr. Bloomberg, a Democrat who became mayor as an independent in 2001 as a Republican, said he would like to reiterate his support for Mr. Cuomo during early voting.
“Being New York’s mayor is the second-toughest job in America, and the next mayor will face untold challenges,” Bloomberg said. “Andrew Cuomo has the experience and toughness to stand up for New Yorkers and get things done.”
Mamdani’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
Mamdani, a Queens state representative, has a double-digit lead over Cuomo in opinion polls with less than a week to go until the general election.
Prominent centrists such as Mr. Bloomberg and Mr. Suozzi have previously supported Mr. Cuomo, who lost a shocking June Democratic primary to Mr. Mamdani, who reframed his campaign to focus on affordability. Bloomberg spent more than $8 million supporting Cuomo’s primary campaign.
Other billionaires, including big donors to the Republican Party and President Trump, have also backed Mr. Cuomo with millions of dollars in his campaign. Mr. Cuomo has been making overtures to conservatives in hopes of solidifying the anti-Mamdani vote. But polls show Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angels vigilante group, trailing in third place but with significant support.
Mr. Cuomo welcomed Mr. Bloomberg’s second endorsement.
“This election will determine the future of New York City. Choose leadership with experience and a proven track record, or take a risky gamble on inexperience and extremism,” Cuomo said in a statement.
In addition to Mr. Lawler, others who have previously despised Mr. Cuomo are now approaching the former three-term Democratic governor who resigned in 2021 amid allegations of sexual harassment and mismanagement of a nursing home during the coronavirus pandemic.
A week earlier, Mayor Eric Adams, a moderate who lost his long-awaited re-election bid after scandals hampered his administration, endorsed Mr. Cuomo. Less than two months later, Mr. Adams called Mr. Cuomo a “snake and a liar” and is seeking to oust him from office as the city’s second Black mayor.
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Contact us via email (emcuevas1@usatoday.com) or Signal (emcuevas.01).
