In an endorsement announcement shared exclusively with the Daily News this week, the watchdog group wrote that it is urging New Yorkers to back Cuomo, Brad Lander and Zellnor Myrie for mayor in the June 24 Democratic mayoral primary.
The group, which was founded in 1897 to serve as a counterweight to the notoriously corrupt Tammany Hall political machine, didn’t offer a proposed specific ranking of the three candidates, opting instead to endorse all of them jointly. In a statement, the group’s board acknowledged the move is “unusual,” but argued there’s good reason for it.
“No single candidate currently running is perfectly equipped to handle this challenge. But New Yorkers are not limited to choosing just one candidate — they can, and should, rank up to five candidates,” the statement read.
“The Citizens Union Board of Directors debated this question at length and concluded that the best service to voters at this stage of the election is not to prefer a single candidate, but to provide a clear, nuanced view of the race. In this unusual election, we offer our backing to an unusual slate of three candidates.”
Cuomo told The News he’s “honored to have their support at this critical moment for New York City.”
But that’s a far cry from where the Citizens Union stood in August 2021 .
At the time, the group’s then-chairman, Randy Mastro , said in a statement his members were troubled by Cuomo’s refusal to immediately resign after State Attorney General Letitia James’ office found he had sexually harassed subordinates “in violation of both federal and state laws.”
“It is a shame that it has come to this, but since the governor refuses to do the right thing, the State Legislature must. It should immediately commence impeachment proceedings to remove him from office,” Mastro, who has since left the Citizens Union and is now Mayor Eric Adams’ top deputy at City Hall , said in the Aug. 3, 2021 statement.
Cuomo, who has denied sexually harassing anyone, announced his resignation a week later.
In this week’s endorsement announcement, the Citizens Union did acknowledge it remains concerned about aspects of Cuomo’s record, saying “his decade as governor left serious ethical stains and he too often misused the power whose deployment he so skillfully mastered.”
Grace Rauh , Citizens Union’s executive director, said the endorsement decision was “hotly debated” by the board’s members, but declined to share a breakdown on how their internal vote fell.
Regarding Lander, the group touted his dedication to “fighting for transparency and reform, focusing on detailed policy solutions,” but also said he “must prove he can inspire and lead a city navigating rough waters.” Myrie “represents the next generation of reform” and has “earned a chance to show his leadership at City Hall” despite having “no executive experience to date,” the group wrote.
Citizens Union is the latest group to throw its weight behind Cuomo’s mayoral bid despite calling for his ouster as governor.
In April, the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council and 32BJ, two politically powerful local unions, endorsed Cuomo despite having also pressured him to resign in 2021.
The ex-gov remains the favorite to win the mayoral primary, according to polls. In some recent surveys, Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, who has consistently polled as the runner-up to Cuomo, is closing in on the former governor’s lead. Mamdani didn’t submit a questionnaire to be considered for the Citizens Union’s endorsement, the group said.
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