A central narrative at the core of Andrew Cuomo’s comeback attempt is that his enduring support among Black New Yorkers will provide him with a strong base to launch a campaign for mayor. The reality is much more complicated. Any comeback attempt would resurface a long-standing pattern of divisive politics towards the Black community which Cuomo will be forced to defend.
Today’s history lesson starts in 2002, when Mario Cuomo’s son, Andrew, returned to New York just in time to launch a divisive challenge against our best hope for a Black governor, Carl McCall. Andrew’s campaign quickly turned nasty.
First, Andrew dismissed McCall’s campaign as little more than “a racial contract” between Black and Hispanic New Yorkers that should not prevail. When concerns were raised about potential fallout from an ugly primary, Andrew told county Democratic chairs not to worry because he was married to Bobby Kennedy’s daughter and “Black families have three pictures on their walls: Jesus Christ, Martin Luther King and one of the Kennedy brothers.”
Cuomo eventually left the 2002 race in disgrace after communities of color cried out in outrage. He apologized and left public life for a while to lick his wounds.
A contrite Andrew ran for attorney general in 2006 and many of us were willing to give him a second chance, but it didn’t take long before another opportunity presented itself to deny a Black man power — and Andrew jumped at it.
Our first Black governor, David Paterson, was gearing up to launch a campaign for another term. Andrew knew he couldn’t come after Paterson in a primary — not with memories of McCall and 2002 still on our minds. So rather than challenge Paterson openly, Cuomo used the attorney general’s office to run an orchestrated campaign to push Paterson out of the race.
Our Time Press reported, “The media attacks on Gov. Paterson seemed orchestrated to provide NYS Attorney General Andrew Cuomo an unobstructed red carpet walk to the governor’s mansion. … If Cuomo does announce his candidacy for NYS governor, it will be interesting to see how he courts Black voters, a key Democratic block. With his history, it will not be easy.”
That brings us to today. Faced with a dozen credible reports of sexual harassment and an impeachment inquiry in the state Legislature, Cuomo resigned as governor. Once again, a disgraced Andrew Cuomo was forced to leave public life to lick his wounds.
So who does Cuomo blame for his personal failings? The state’s first Black attorney general, of course!
Rather than take responsibility for the bullying and abusive behavior that led him to resign, Cuomo and his political operatives have launched a series of attacks on Attorney General Letitia James — dismissing the attorney general for “incompetence.” The racially-tinged tone of the attacks on the attorney general are Trump-like.
To her credit, the attorney general has not backed down from the bully. She fired back at Cuomo for “disgracefully attacking anyone in his path, pushing others down in order to prop himself up. But I will not bow.”
Even more recently, Cuomo took an opportunity to score points with potential campaign donors by attacking the first Black Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg. This prompted a response from prominent Black leaders, who joined together with an open letter pushing back on Cuomo’s criticism of Bragg while he ignored the actions of white prosecutors.
Of course, for those of us who have interacted with Cuomo over the years, his public treatment of Black leaders is not surprising. His offensive use of language towards Black people is at best out of touch and at worst racist.
In her bestselling book, “Confidence Man,” long-time New York reporter Maggie Haberman writes that “the only two politicians I ever heard publicly use the phrase ‘The Blacks’ were Donald Trump and Andrew Cuomo.”
In October 2019, Cuomo was criticized for using the N-word during a radio interview.
In January 2008, Cuomo was dismissive of Barack Obama’s candidacy, saying “You can’t shuck and jive” in early-state primaries.
New York City has serious challenges, and people of color need our local government to not only perform for them, but be led by someone who understands and respects them. We don’t have time for personal ambitions. Cuomo’s father, Mario, was a champion for our communities. His son’s actions now threaten that legacy.
In short, the 2025 election for mayor should be about who is best to continue New York’s City’s resurrection, not about Andrew Cuomo’s rehabilitation. We may forgive, but we don’t forget.
Lewis is founder and president of Black Leadership and Action Coalition.
