Wednesday night, the final debate in the New York City mayoral race took place, and sparks were flying.
Andrew Cuomo had Zohran Mamdani on the ropes, and most agreed that he won the debate even though he took several shots himself.
Mamdani came off as the loser, but not just during the debate.
The experts grading the debate all leaned into Cuomo as the winner, and Mamdani no longer had that little smirk on his face from the first debate.
Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist University Institute for Public Opinion, stated, “Cuomo won the debate. He had a good night. He landed more punches and exposed weaknesses in Mamdani’s presentation. He presented doubts about Mamdani.”
Democratic operative and lobbyist Yvette Buckner added, “[Mamdani’s] lack of specifics on key issues like ballot initiatives gave Cuomo and Sliwa an opening to go on the attack.”
Mamdani will definitely take a hit from this, but I have to wonder if it is too late to rally for Cuomo, as Sliwa is not dropping out, and we are only a week away from early voting starting.
I have regularly questioned how the Jewish community in New York City can support Mamdani, and we are finally starting to see significant pushback on this front.
A group of more than 650 rabbis signed a letter opposing his campaign.
The group, in part, stated that it “cannot remain silent in the face of rising anti-Zionism and its political normalization throughout our nation.”
Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove of Park Avenue Synagogue added, “They are constituent building blocks and inseparable strands of my Jewish identity … To accept me as a Jew but to ask me to check my concern for the people and state of Israel at the door is a nonsensical proposition and an offensive one.”
I think actor Michael Rappaport is a loony tune, but he comes up with some great stuff from time to time, and now he is trying to expose the walking hypocrisy that is Mamdani after spotting him out at a high-end eatery.
He posted to X, "How’s a so-called ‘working class’ mayoral candidate like Zohran Mamdani eating at OMEN SUSHI tonight — one of the priciest joints in NYC. This clown lives in a rent-stabilized apartment in Queens but dines like a diplomat on a Qatar-funded per diem. Who’s paying for that toro, ‘Zoron the Moron. You ain’t working class — you’re fraud class. #ZohranMamdani #ZoronTheMoron."
When someone called out Rappaport to argue about the prices of the restaurant, Rappaport fired back, “This offends you — but a mayoral candidate of NYC declaring there’s a genocide going on with 0.0 evidence, refusing to condemn 'Globalize the Intifada,' and stacking up dozens of false promises doesn’t offend you?!”
The heat is being turned up on Mamdani, but he has a massive 15-point lead in the last poll, and I am not sure Cuomo can make that much up in a three-way race. Granted, there was still about 11% undecided, and Mayor Adams just endorsed Cuomo, but it was Curtis Sliwa who benefited from Adams dropping out. I won’t rule it out, but this still looks like a walkover race for Mamdani (I am praying I am wrong).
