Mamdani sticks to making a statement in mayoral debate as Cuomo and Sliwa battle

The three mayoral candidates spoke to each other Thursday, trading barbs and explaining why they deserve to lead New York City in the first debate of the general election.

Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, who is leading in the polls, defended his opponents’ attacks. Meanwhile, Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa and former independent Gov. Andrew Cuomo attempted to portray the front-runner as too inexperienced and reckless to become mayor.

Still, Mamdani maintained his poise in defending himself and was able to briefly describe his proposals and hit Cuomo.

“If you want more of the same, vote for Andrew Cuomo, if you want a real approach to reducing crime, look at our Department of Community Safety,” Mandani said at one point, before launching his plan to send mental health workers to respond to mental health crises.

Cuomo found himself under fire not only from Mamdani, but also from Sliwa, when the former governor attempted to attack his two rivals.

Appearing without his trademark red beret, Sliwa attempted to paint Cuomo and Mamdani as two equal people.

He once called Cuomo and Mamdani the “architect and apprentice” of several policies that he said made the city less safe, including changes to bail.

Screenshot via WNBC

Most of the first hour of the debate was dominated by questions about international issues before discussions about local issues such as affordability or education.

He spent much of the evening discussing Mamdani’s previous social media posts. Cuomo, for example, brought up Mamdani’s 2020 posts calling the New York Police Department racist and anti-queer following the George Floyd protests. Months later, he tweeted criticism of the police overtime budget.

“Andrew Cuomo is a politician from the past and all he can talk about are tweets from the past in 2020,” Mamdani said. “Those are tweets for which I have directly apologized to New Yorkers and police officers, and they are not what I am actually posting.”

The winner of the Democratic primary, who maintains a double-digit lead in the polls, was questioned at length about his criticism of Israel. The candidates also discussed how they would handle the National Guard and how they would confront President Donald Trump.

Sliwa, who said he has not spoken to the president in years and is not fully aligned with Make America Great Again supporters, said his opponents had “high levels of testosterone” when it came to dealing with the president. He would be different, he said.

“You can be tough, but you can’t be tough if this is going to cost people desperately needed federal funds,” he said, adding that he would negotiate to keep the Gateway Tunnel from New Jersey to New York but agreed with canceling the Second Avenue subway extension in East Harlem.

“If you try to be tough on Trump, the only people who are going to suffer from that are the people of New York City,” Sliwa added.

Cuomo criticized Mamdani’s relative lack of experience, stating that Mamdani had never held a job before, although he has been an assemblyman since 2021 and previously worked as a housing counselor.

“If you look at the mayors who failed, they were the ones who had no management experience, don’t do it again,” Cuomo said.

Mamdani and Cuomo exchanged views on the latter’s decision to send sick seniors back to nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is reportedly under investigation by the Department of Justice.

“If we have a health pandemic, why would New Yorkers go back to the governor who sent seniors to die in nursing homes? That’s the kind of experience being offered here today,” Mamdani said. “What I don’t have in experience I make up for in integrity. And what you don’t have in integrity, you can never make up for in experience.”

Moderators then asked candidates to weigh in on local issues, including housing, education, policing and immigration.

One of Mamdani’s signature promises is to order the Rental Standards Board to freeze rents on more than 1 million rent-regulated apartments. He also said he would build 200,000 “truly affordable” apartments over 10 years.

Sliwa promised to reduce property taxes for residents over 65 and earning less than $250,000, while Cuomo said he would focus on building more housing.

As for education, Sliwa called for the expansion of the gifted and talented program, noting that his two youngest children tried it at age 4 and didn’t get in, but he said it didn’t affect their education.

Cuomo said he would double the number of specialized high schools from nine to 18 and maintain the exam to enter those schools.

Mamdani, who graduated from a New York City magnet high school, clarified his plan to cut the gifted and talented program to just kindergarten students.

However, neither candidate offered ideas or policy suggestions for the thousands of students with learning difficulties when asked.

All candidates raised their hands to indicate they could take steps to stop the federal crackdown on immigrants, including arrests of asylum seekers who showed up for routine appointments, but none had concise answers about what exactly they would do.

Cuomo and Mamdani said they would work to provide legal representation to immigrants, while Sliwa said “migrants who are essential workers” should be protected.

The debate, co-hosted by WNBC, Telemundo and POLITICO, is the first of two required under the city’s Campaign Finance Board rules. The final debate, co-hosted by THE CITY, is scheduled for Wednesday, October 22 from 7 to 8:30 pm. It will air on NY1 and WNYC, as well as THE CITY’s website.

It is not clear whether this debate can change the situation.

In a recent Quinnipiac poll, Cuomo gained 10 points after Mayor Eric Adams dropped out, with 33% supporting him, but he was still behind Mamdani’s 46%. The same poll showed that very few New Yorkers remain undecided.

Cuomo appeared to gain some momentum with 10 days left before early voting begins on Oct. 25 and weeks before Election Day on Nov. 4.

Before the debate, Mamdani marched from Trump Tower to 30 Rockefeller Center, where the debate took place, with a group of supporters, including a marching band.

Sliwa, who lost to Adams in the 2021 election, told THE CITY before the debate that he was “the town’s mayor” after greeting supporters. Some of them blew their whistles.

“I represent the outer districts. I represent the working class. I am the populist candidate,” he said. “Andrew Cuomo, he’s old. He had it. He had his chance. He destroyed the state. And Mamdani, that’s fantasy. Tonight I’m bringing reality to the stage.”

Cuomo was the last to arrive and greeted his followers before entering the debate studio.