Former New York Gov. and New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo (D) responded to the news that President Donald Trump endorsed him, pointing out that Trump “opposes” Democrat Socialist NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani more, and believes Mamdani is an “existential threat.”
Cuomo explained that while both he and Trump believe that Mamdani is “an existential threat,” Trump believes that “Mamdani is a Communist.” Cuomo also pointed out that what the Democratic Socialists of America believe in, such as abolishment of jails and private ownership of real estate, is “frightening stuff.”
“The President does not support me, the President opposes Zohran Mamdani,” Cuomo said. “The President believes Zohran Mamdani is a Communist, he believes he’s an existential threat. I believe he’s a Socialist, and an existential threat. And, not a dress-up Socialist, right. Their school of Socialism — this Democratic Socialists of America, government controls the means of production. No private ownership of real estate, abolish jails, decriminalize prostitution, this is frightening stuff.”
On Monday, Trump urged people in NYC to vote for Cuomo over Mamdani, stating that the city would “only get worse with a Communist at the helm.” Trump also pointed out that voting for Republican NYC mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa was “a vote for Mamdani.”
“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,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “His principles have been tested for over a thousand years, and never once have they been successful. I would much rather see a Democrat, who has had a Record of Success, WIN, than a Communist with no experience and a Record of COMPLETE AND TOTAL FAILURE.”
Mamdani vowed, during a recent press conference, that he will defend the rights of illegal aliens to continue to live in NYC, and highlighted that he would “be the mayor that stands up for” the city’s sanctuary city policies.
“I will be the mayor that stands up for our sanctuary city policies, that stands up for every New Yorker’s right to live in this city, and the mayor who will hold everyone accountable to the law, no matter who they are,” Mamdani said.
Mamdani has also advocated for city-run grocery stores, and has also previously expressed his opposition to sending police officers to respond to domestic dispute calls. While speaking on the Immigrantly podcast in July 2020, Mamdani stated:
Police do not create safety… there are so many responsibilities we’ve given to police that, frankly, should have nothing to do with their departments… if somebody is jaywalking, if somebody is surviving, going through domestic violence — there are so many different, different situations that would be far better handled by people trained to deal with those specific situations, as opposed to an individual with a gun.
Trump’s urging of people to vote for Cuomo comes as several polls have found that Mamdani is leading Cuomo and Sliwa in the NYC mayoral election. A Quinnipiac University poll conducted between October 23-27, 2025, of 911 likely voters in the city found Mamdani leading with 43 percent support, with Cuomo receiving 33 percent of support from respondents. Sliwa had received 14 percent of support from respondents.
An AtlastIntell poll conducted between October 31-November 2, 2025, of 2,404 likely voters in the NYC mayoral election found that Mamdani received 43.9 percent of support, Cuomo received 39.4, and Sliwa received 15.5 percent of support.
When asked who they would vote for if the race were just between Mamdani and Cuomo, Cuomo received 49.7 percent of support, while Mamdani received 44.1 percent of support.
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