Andrew Cuomo Challenges Zohran Mamdani to Participate in Five Mayoral Debates, One in Each Borough
“New Yorkers deserve answers. I challenge [Assemblyman Mamdani] to five debates, one in every borough, where we speak about the issues in that borough. Show up. Tell New Yorkers who you are and what you really believe, once and for all. Tell us who you are. I will do it anytime, anywhere. Anytime, anywhere. Five debates.” - Andrew Cuomo
Video of the full remarks can be viewed here
New York, NY - Today, Andrew Cuomo, candidate for NYC mayor, challenged Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani to five debates, one in each borough, to honestly address the issues most important to the residents of each borough.
“New Yorkers deserve answers. I challenge [Assemblyman Mamdani] to five debates, one in every borough, where we speak about the issues in that borough. Show up. Tell New Yorkers who you are and what you really believe, once and for all. Tell us who you are. I will do it anytime, anywhere. Anytime, anywhere. Five debates.”
“The more New Yorkers find out about Mamdani, the less they will support him," Cuomo continued. "He is a political chameleon. He is whatever he needs to be given the environment that he is in, he changes with the audience,” said Cuomo. “Every poll shows he's at about 40%. No poll has said a majority of New Yorkers support him. That's why he is so concerned about the other candidates.”
“Mamdani is a major candidate in the race, supported by a minority of New Yorkers,” he said.
A transcript of the full remarks is below:
I watched part of the press conference yesterday by Mr. Mamdani, where he had a temper tantrum slash meltdown, and I just want to correct some facts: Mr. Mamdani is right, he won the primary election. The key word is primary. So the primary, and then you have a general election, which is the election that actually makes a determination. So winning a primary is not demonstrative of anything.
I read newspaper reports that says or speculates that President Trump is speaking to Mayor Adams about a possible position. I have no idea if that's accurate or not. I haven't spoken to President Trump about it. I haven't spoken to Mayor Adams about it. And that’s speculation. I know nothing about that speculation. I do believe, and I have said, that as all the candidates agree that Mamdani is an existential threat, that it makes sense that when you get to a point when you can determine who is the strongest candidate, the other candidates defer to the stronger candidate. That was a proposal made by Jim Walden. That was a proposal seconded by Governor Paterson. I think that makes sense. Jim Walden actually did that the other day, and I applaud him for it. Because if you believe the existential threat is Mamdani, which I do, and Mayor Adams does, and Jim Walden did, and Curtis Sliwa said he did. Well, then what should be most important is defeating Mr. Mamdani. So if you're not the strongest candidate, step aside.
Mr. Mamdani is not supported by the majority of New Yorkers. He is not supported by the majority of New Yorkers. There have been 4,782 polls taken in this race, metaphorically. Every poll shows he's at about 40%. No poll has said a majority of New Yorkers support him. That's why he is so concerned about the other candidates, because the only way he wins is if you divide up the majority of New Yorkers. Because if you're at 40% you have to hope other candidates divide the 60%. And that's why he had that meltdown when it was suggested that Mayor Adams may leave the race, because then it suggests there’d be a consolidation of the opposition to Mamdani, and the opposition to Mamdani is a majority. And it is only going to get worse.
The more New Yorkers find out about this guy, the less they will support him. He is a political chameleon. He is whatever he needs to be given the environment that he is in, he changes with the audience. Literally changes accents with the audience. He will say whatever he has to say in that moment, and he has taken positions that are so absurd, so out of the mainstream, so discordant with what New Yorkers believe, that when they hear them, they will reject him.
I've been a New Yorker all my life, I know New Yorkers, and they are not going to abide by his positions, and they're going to be undeniable. Now, you guys can't get him to give a straight answer. He gives you a word salad whenever you ask a question, he never says yes or no. He always obfuscates. You can't get away with that, because New Yorkers are going to demand an answer. They're frankly not going to be as polite as you are.
The man has said and written, it is videotaped: Defund the police, disband the police, disarm the police, the police are racists. Racists. Not the police are not nice people. The police are racist. The police are a threat to public safety. That's what he has said. He has said we should deconstruct jails and carceral facilities. He has said that. He has said he's against the ownership of private property. What does that mean? I can't own my own home? You're against the ownership of private property? He has said government should control the means of production. He has said that. You have the words. And New Yorkers are not going to buy that.
Well, I changed my mind. You changed your mind, when? From all those statements, what did you change your mind on? Defund? Disband? Disarm? being a socialist? And if you change your mind on everything you have said to date, why would anyone believe you? Why would anyone believe you? And what are you going to change to tomorrow? That's what he has demonstrated. You cannot believe what he says, because he says different things to different people, and when you try to ask him the question, he simply will not answer.
And he obfuscates, and frankly, you guys, let him get away with it. I won't let him get away with it. And New Yorkers won't let him get away with it. New Yorkers deserve answers. I challenge him to five debates, one in every borough, where we speak about the issues in that borough. We go to Queens, we talk to people in Queens about the issue in Queens. We go to Staten Island, etc… Five debates, one in each borough. Show up. Tell New Yorkers who you are, and what you really believe once and for all. Tell us who you are. I will do it anytime, anywhere, anytime, anywhere. Five debates.
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