US President Donald Trump on Monday endorsed former New York governor Andrew Cuomo for mayor of New York City and threatened to hold back federal funds to the city if Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral election yesterday.
Trump, a Republican who has offered frequent commentary on the New York mayoral election, injected himself further into the race by crossing party lines to support Cuomo over Mamdani and the Republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa, who trails badly in public opinion polls in the heavily Democratic city. Cuomo, a longtime stalwart in the Democratic Party, is running as an independent after losing to Mamdani in the Democratic primary.
The New York City election has been closely watched nationally as one that could help shape the image of the Democratic Party as it seeks its identity in opposition to Trump. Mamdani, 34, a self-described democratic socialist who is leading Cuomo in the polls, has energized younger and more progressive voters, but he has also alarmed more moderate Democrats who fear a shift too far to the left might backfire.
Photo: AFP
Republicans have attacked Mamdani’s candidacy throughout the campaign, with Trump casting him as a communist.
“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 on social media.
Trump said a vote for Sliwa would only help Mamdani.
“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,” said Trump, a native New Yorker.
The US federal government is providing US$7.4 billion to New York City in fiscal 2026, or 6.4 percent of the city’s total spending, according to a report from the New York State Comptroller.
Trump has threatened federal funding cuts throughout his second term in office over climate initiatives, transgender policies, pro-Palestinian protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, and diversity, equity and inclusion practices.
Yesterday marked the nation’s first major Election Day since Trump returned to the White House, and his leadership and policies dominated the debate in almost every race — even though he was absent from the campaign trail.
The biggest contests were in Virginia and New Jersey, the only states electing governors this year. Trump lost both last fall, but voters in each have a history of electing Republicans for statewide office. The Republican candidates have closely aligned themselves with the president, betting that his big win last year could still provide a path to victory this time, even if the party occupying the White House typically suffers in off-year elections.
Meanwhile, strong Democratic showings could provide the party a pathway back to national relevance — even if its top candidates have taken very different approaches, from adhering to a moderate line to wholeheartedly embracing government spending to improve voters’ lives.
Trump did not set foot in either Virginia or New Jersey to campaign with Republican gubernatorial candidates Winsome Earle-Sears or Jack Ciattarelli, but both contests are likely to be viewed as a referendum on his job so far.
Over the past year, his tariffs rocked the global economy, his “big, beautiful” budget bill threatened rural hospitals and health insurance coverage for millions, he enacted massive cuts to the federal workforce and he sent the National Guard to multiple US cities.
The president endorsed Ciattarelli in New Jersey’s governor’s race, but held only a pair of tele-town halls on his behalf, including one on Monday night.
Trump also did an Election Night eve tele-town hall for Virginia Republican candidates, but he did not mention Earle-Sears, speaking mostly in favor of the Republican candidate for attorney general. Earlier in the campaign, Trump gave Earle-Sears only a half-hearted endorsement, saying he supported the Republican candidate for governor though he did not use her name. Earle-Sears was nonetheless a fierce defender of Trump and his policies, just as Ciattarelli was in New Jersey.
Despite Trump’s distance, a good night for Republicans would almost certainly be viewed as a political victory for Trump and his “Make America Great Again” policies. A bad night for the Republicans would give Democrats a strong — though perhaps fleeting — start heading into midterms that are still a year away.
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