Introducing Andrew Cuo-No-Show.
Mayoral hopeful Andrew Cuomo has taken a noticeable break from his public campaigning, having spent 10 days off the trail since the Labor Day weekend, according to a Post review — leaving insiders questioning why he isn’t actively working to catch up to competitor Zohran Mamdani ahead of the November elections.
The former governor’s seemingly detached approach sharply contrasts with his rivals, Mamdani, the socialist Democratic candidate, and GOP representative Curtis Sliwa, who have both remained visible and engaged throughout the Big Apple since August 31.
Numerous insiders expressed confusion over Cuomo’s decision, particularly as he’s an independent candidate who has been consistently polling second to Mamdani yet isn’t doing more to sway voters and close the gap.
“Especially during October, it’s crucial to be at several events each day, if only for the optics,” noted a seasoned Democratic strategist.
“If not now, when? Now is the moment.”
Cuomo’s public appearances total 36 days following the Labor Day holiday marking the unofficial start of the general election season, as recorded by his schedule.
Overall, many of these events were announced just hours or even minutes prior to occurring.
Out of the days since the campaign launch, only 17 included multiple events, mainly concentrated on weekends and geared toward faith-based audiences.
Cuomo’s campaign team contends he has been engaged in private meetings and other activities on the days without a public agenda.
“Andrew Cuomo is tirelessly engaging with voters, rallying support, and participating in local and national media interviews to amplify his message, working around the clock during this election,” remarked campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi.
Nonetheless, this apparent distance from voters is reminiscent of Cuomo’s recent Democratic primary campaign, during which he was a front-runner yet suffered a surprising defeat to Mamdani in a historic upset.
The latest Fox News polling, released on Thursday, shows Mamdani has finally crossed the 50% mark among likely voters, while Cuomo stands at 28% and Sliwa at 13%.
“Had he been more proactive, like canvassing Church Avenue a year ago, he wouldn’t be in this frustrating predicament,” lamented a long-time supporter of Cuomo.
“It feels almost corporate and removed. We need more enthusiastic and vigorous campaigning, which is exactly what Mamdani is delivering.”
Mamdani typically holds at least one public event daily, connecting with voters even with his frontrunner status that comes with less room for mistakes that could harm his candidacy, as per his agenda.
Meanwhile, Sliwa has conducted more public events this week than Cuomo has since Labor Day.
After the first general mayoral election debate on Thursday, Mamdani hosted a “reverse town hall,” while Sliwa held a press conference addressing subway safety and attended a memorial service for a security guard who was tragically killed.
Cuomo, on the other hand, had no public engagements scheduled for Friday.
The three-term Democratic governor has attributed his loss in the June primary to a campaign strategy that lacked sufficient aggressiveness and failed to leverage the potential of social media — a misstep unlike Mamdani’s social media-savvy approach.
As Cuomo embarked on his independent campaign, he recognized to supporters that he had made errors and emphasized the need to engage with voters.
When questioned about what lessons he learned from his primary defeat during Thursday’s debate, Cuomo replied: “I didn’t prioritize social media enough, which is undeniably an impactful medium.”
The former governor and his team have significantly ramped up their presence on X and other social media platforms since the primary, including producing viral clips targeting Mamdani and even participating in interviews with influencer Logan Paul.
However, several insiders argue it may be too late for Cuomo to recover, regardless of his strategy.
“At this point, Cuomo simply lacks a viable route to victory. It’s too late for him to strengthen his weak outreach efforts. Unless an extraordinary event occurs, Mamdani is likely headed for an easy win,” stated Democratic consultant Chris Sosa.
“Cuomo can lament social media all he wants, but the real issue with his campaign comes down to one core factor: a significant number of voters have a negative perception of Andrew Cuomo. More handshakes won’t resolve such a critical issue.”
