NEW YORK — Andrew Cuomo’s New York City mayoral bid is tearing apart a bloc of Democratic politicians representing a high-turnout area — a situation that’s gotten so messy, three officials denounced their purported endorsement of the former governor.
Cuomo, who leads the crowded field of Democratic candidates, picked up the backing of a slate of politicians in Southeast Queens. The support marked a setback for rival Adrienne Adams — the City Council speaker who has represented the area for over a decade — as she races to catch up to Cuomo’s polling lead and fundraising haul. It’s also a blow to Mayor Eric Adams, whose reelection plans are in doubt.
The endorsements offered Cuomo backing among Black Democrats whose constituents are reliable voters in generally low-turnout mayoral primaries, despite Adrienne Adams’ potential to become the city’s first Black woman mayor.
The process was far from clean.
“I told them from the beginning, I wasn’t voting for him,” state Sen. Leroy Comrie said of Cuomo, despite issuing a press release announcing the bloc of support for the ex-governor Saturday morning. “Just look at his history with what he did with us Democratic senators. Look at his history with Covid, to veterans, closing Creedmoor [Psychiatric Center] putting more homeless in the street. There’s a litany of things that he’s done that have not been helpful to working people.”
He is backing the Council speaker instead, saying in the interview, “I’m an Adrienne guy.”
Comrie was among eight legislators in the area to interview mayoral candidates over the past week, before voting to endorse the former governor. The group also included state Sen. James Sanders, Assemblymembers Clyde Vanel, Alicia Hyndman, Larinda Hooks and Khaleel Anderson and Council Members Selvena Brooks-Powers and Nantasha Williams.
Anderson and Williams also refuted that they’re backing the scandal-scarred Cuomo’s bid for a political comeback.
Anderson called the coalition process “collaborative, collegial, democratic, and thoroughly consultative,” yet released his own personal endorsement slate Saturday, ranking City Comptroller Brad Lander first, followed by Adrienne Adams, Myrie, Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani and state Sen. Jessica Ramos. Cuomo was left off his list entirely.
“You know my politics. I’m just going to leave it right there,” said Anderson, who was elected with the support of the Working Families Party and endorsed the lefty civil rights attorney Maya Wiley for mayor in 2021.
The situation was nevertheless disappointing for Adrienne Adams’ 11th-hour bid to oust Eric Adams, to whom she has no relation. Sanders had spoken just two weeks earlier at her campaign launch, and Brooks-Powers is on her council leadership team.
Sanders expressed reluctance with selecting the former governor as the top choice, saying in an interview, “My heart may be in many different places, but my community elected me to lead with my head and my heart.”
Comrie was the de facto leader of the coalition, as the longest-serving elected official in the group. So it fell to him to blast a statement announcing the coalition’s decision — a statement that nodded to some of the hand wringing over the endorsement.
It included an apology to “our fellow elected officials” who learned about the coalition’s endorsement through a leak. Comrie declined to explain further. “We recognize the importance of clear and respectful communication within our ranks and are committed to improving this moving forward,” he wrote.
Adding to the confusion, Adrienne Adams’ campaign had already listed Sanders as an endorser, after he was a featured speaker at her campaign kickoff rally this month.
“If you want Adrienne Adams to win, you've got to get your neighbors to the polls!” Sanders said to cheers at the rally in his district. “You've gotta find those who were not here today, and you gotta cut past their excuses.”
Cuomo’s campaign declined to comment on the confusion.
The endorsing legislators say they’re ranking Cuomo first, Adrienne Adams second and state Sen. Zellnor Myrie third, Vanel and Comrie said. The city’s ranked-choice voting system allows New Yorkers to choose up to five candidates in order of preference. The share of votes for the lower-ranked candidates is redistributed as they are eliminated until the winner crosses a 50 percent threshold.
“We found that Cuomo has the experience and he has the managerial skill, he has the understanding of how to get New York City through the next few years,” Vanel said.
The coalition also voted to back Council Member Justin Brannan for city comptroller and incumbent Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.
"It’s sad to see elected officials support a former governor who underfunded schools and closed hospitals in Southeast Queens,” Adrienne Adams spokesperson Lupe Todd-Medina said in a statement. “From the start, we knew the Cuomo camp would use pressure and intimidation because Adrienne is the biggest threat to his comeback tour. If they want to waste time playing politics, so be it. Adrienne is focused on restoring competence and integrity to City Hall without the drama, nonsense, or scandal. Adrienne will continue to gather support from the people of Southeast Queens and all communities."
Cuomo grew up in Hollis, Queens, but only recently relocated to New York City, moving to a swank building in Manhattan after spending years living in Albany or suburban Westchester County. Campaign opponents have accused the former governor of having loose ties to the city he wants to lead, and hurting it during his time in Albany out of spite toward then-Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The ex-governor is trying to stage a political comeback after resigning in 2021 following accusations of sexual harassment that he denies. His campaign is banking on support from blue-collar voters of color, a crucial base that Adrienne Adams needs to win.
The Council speaker lives in the Southeast Queens neighborhood of South Jamaica, and is banking on pulling support from Cuomo in the area.
Saturday’s loss adds to her list of problems: She is not well known, shares a last name with an unpopular incumbent and faces huge financial difficulties owing to her late entrance into the race. Opponents had already unlocked millions of dollars in public matching funds; Cuomo reported a large early fundraising haul and has a super PAC backing him as well.
Brooks-Powers’ defection is a particular blow for the Adams campaign. She was the first incoming council member to support Adrienne Adams’ longshot speaker campaign in 2021. Adams rewarded her with the leadership position of majority whip and a plum chair leading the Transportation and Infrastructure committee.
Brooks-Powers did not return a request for comment.
Eric Adams grew up in Southeast Queens, and a strong performance in the area — boosted by endorsements from Sanders, Hyndman, Vanel, Brooks-Powers and Adrienne Adams — helped propel him to victory in 2021. But this year, Eric Adams has barely mounted a campaign. Comrie said he was invited to speak to the group, but declined, citing scheduling issues.
Rep. Greg Meeks, the Queens Democratic County leader who backed Adrienne Adams to become the top City Council lawmaker, was not included on the endorsement.
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