New York City mayoral debate: Sharp attacks as Mamdani, Cuomo, Sliwa face off a final time

(NEW YORK) — The knives came out during Wednesday night’s second and final New York City mayoral debate.

While answering questions on policy issues such as housing and education, the candidates onstage — Democratic candidate and state assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, Republican candidate and “Guardian Angels” founder Curtis Sliwa, and independent candidate and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo — relentlessly attacked each other over what they said were each others’ shortcomings.

Some of the most acrimonious moments came during what were ostensibly meant to be discussions on policy.

Cuomo said that the number of homeless people in New York City had “more than doubled” since he stepped down as governor, criticizing what he claimed was Mamdani’s lack of action on the issue as an assemblyman.

Cuomo, who resigned the governorship in 2021 amid allegations of sexual harassment that he has long denied, used the phrase “since I left,” to refer to the end of his tenure — which Sliwa quickly jumped on.

“Andrew, you didn’t leave. You fled! From being impeached by the Democrats in the state legislature — you fled!” Sliwa cried out.

A question to Mamdani about his position on schools turned into a free-for-all between him and Cuomo.

“I did things — you have never had a job,” Cuomo said to Mamdani at one point. “You’ve never accomplished anything. There’s no reason to believe you have any merit or qualification for 8 and 1/2 million lives … Shame on you. Shame on you.”

Mamdani countered, “Always a pleasure to hear Andrew Cuomo create his own facts at every debate stage. We just had a former governor say in his own words that this city has been getting screwed by the state. Who was leading the state? It was you!”

“Governor Hochul, Governor Hochul,” Cuomo countered, referring to current Gov. Kathy Hochul. “You were the legislator–“

They both continued to talk over each other until a moderator intervened.

Sliwa seized on the fighting to get in a shot.

“I heard the both of them again, fighting like kids in the schoolyard,” Sliwa said. “Zohran, your resume could fit on a cocktail napkin, and Andrew, your failures could fill a public school library in New York City.” 

Overall, on the issue of dealing with President Donad Trump, the candidates were asked what combination of “defiance, diplomacy and cooperation” they’d use if the Trump administration attempts to interfere in the running of the city or threatens to cut funding.  

Sliwa, who has a frosty relationship with Trump — and has not courted his endorsement — criticized the other two candidates as too confrontational.

“My adversaries have decided to bump chests with President Trump to prove who’s more macho,” Sliwa said. “You can’t beat Trump. He holds most of the cards … So if you’re all of a sudden going to get adversarial, you’re going to lose and who gets hurt? The people of New York City. With Trump, it’s always the art of the deal.”

Cuomo, meanwhile, said the mayor has to both confront and work with the president — and then painted a mayoral victory by Mamdani as an invitation for Trump to wreak havoc.

“He has said he’ll take over New York if Mamdani wins, and he will, because he has no respect for him,” Cuomo said. “He thinks he’s a kid, and he’s going to knock him on his tuchus” — using the Yiddish slang term for someone’s rear end. He added that the mayor both has to combat and work with the president at different points

“We first just heard from the Republican candidate for mayor, and then we heard from Donald Trump’s puppet himself, Andrew Cuomo,” Mamdani retorted. “You could turn on TV any day of the week, and you will hear Donald Trump share that his pick for mayor is Andrew Cuomo, and he wants Andrew Cuomo to be the mayor, not because it will be good for New Yorkers, but because it will be good for him.”

In terms of the running of the city, the debate moderators asked Mamdani about recent reports that he would ask New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch to remain in her position if elected, which he said he would. 

“Commissioner Tisch broke the status quo, started to deliver accountability, rooting out corruption and reducing crime across the five boroughs. I have said time and again that my litmus test for that position will be excellence, and the alignment will be of that position,” he said.

Cuomo said he would ask Tisch to stay on and said he didn’t believe Mamdani’s pledge. 

Sliwa said he, too, also would ask Tisch to stay on the job “for stability” but said he didn’t think she would serve in a Cuomo or Mamdani administration.

As for the support of incumbent Democratic Mayor Eric Adams — both Mamdani and Sliwa said they would not accept an endorsement from Adams, who suspended his reelection campaign late last month.

Cuomo said he would and posted a photo of himself online sitting courtside with Adams at a New York Knicks game after the debate.