A last-minute attempt by President Trump to stop socialist Zohran Mamdani's widely predicted victory in New York's mayoral election was unsuccessful, as voters rejected tarnished ex-governor Andrew Cuomo despite Trump's appeal to choose him as the lesser of two evils.
In an election eve post, Trump had warned that Republican Curtis Sliwa had no chance of winning, leaving voters with "no choice" but to support Cuomo, a Democrat who ran as an independent after losing to Mamdani in the primary.
Trump, a Queens native, had taken a close interest in the election for months, blasting Mamdani as a radical threat to Trump's beloved hometown.
“If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required, to my beloved first home, because of the fact that, as a Communist, this once great City has ZERO chance of success, or even survival!" Trump wrote Monday.
“It can only get worse with a Communist at the helm, and I don’t want to send, as President, good money after bad. It is my obligation to run the Nation, and it is my strong conviction that New York City will be a Complete and Total Economic and Social Disaster should Mamdani win,” he added.
Trump had cast a large shadow over the campaign, with Cuomo and Mamdani both presenting themselves as defenders of the liberal city against Trump and his agenda. The Mamdani campaign pounced on Trump's 11th hour, cross-party endorsement to paint Cuomo as a puppet of Trump, while Cuomo dismissed Trump's show of support, saying, “He’s not endorsing me, he’s opposing Mamdani."
Cuomo had to perform a difficult balancing act. While he was reluctant to be tied to Trump in a city dominated by Democrats, Cuomo desperately needed Republican backing to overcome Mamdani.
Indeed, Cuomo appeared on Fox News Tuesday morning to make a final pitch for GOP support, and the governor even issued a rare apology for his scandalous role in nursing home deaths during the COVID pandemic.
Despite Cuomo's baggage, Trump wanted Republicans to support the former governor over Sliwa, whom Trump warned would be a spoiler candidate for Mamdani.
"A vote for Curtis Sliwa (who looks much better without the beret!) is a vote for Mamdani. Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice. You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job. He is capable of it, Mamdani is not!" Trump wrote.
Sliwa had resisted pressure to end his campaign to help Cuomo, with Sliwa blaming the disgraced ex-governor and his party for failing to stop Mamdani sooner.
While some Republicans are blaming Sliwa for the outcome, Cuomo would have lost even without Sliwa splitting the anti-Mamdani vote. Mamdani received just over 50%, while Cuomo grabbed around 42% and Sliwa got 7%. If Cuomo got every one of Sliwa's votes, it still wouldn't have been enough - and it is safe to say that many Sliwa voters were never going to back Cuomo anyway.
Trump's endorsement may have motivated some Republicans to hold their noses and support Cuomo, but ultimately, it wasn't enough to salvage a lousy candidate.
