Along with serving as an adviser to his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, for many years, Andrew Cuomo held the position of Secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) during the Clinton Administration. He also served as New York\u2019s attorney general for four years before being elected governor himself in 2010.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But his political career was not without incident. In 2021, the three-term governor was forced to resign as governor amid a sexual harassment scandal<\/a>. Several women accused him of sexual harassment, allegations he strongly denies. Many New Yorkers have also been critical of the former governor\u2019s handling of COVID-19 in New York, saying his actions led to the virus ripping through nursing homes across the state.<\/p>\n However, in an interview with Schneps Media, Cuomo stated that his extensive experience equips him with insight into the complexities of governance and the specific needs of New Yorkers. This background, he explained, uniquely positions him to manage the city\u2019s operations in a way that his opponents, Zohran Mamdani and Curtis Sliwa, can not.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBecause experience matters,\u201d he said. \u201cI know how the state legislature passes laws. I know what it takes to get something done in the city council. I know what to ask for in a state budget that is reasonable and that the state can actually do. Because I understand the budget from the state\u2019s point of view, frankly, better than the state understands the budget from the state\u2019s point of view.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite his resume and background, Cuomo lost the Democratic primary in June to Mamdani, a candidate with considerably less experience in city and state government. The loss, however, compelled Cuomo to keep going in the race, but to run as an independent \u2014 hoping to attract more moderate and conservative voters in the general election.<\/p>\n Andrew Cuomo, candidate for NYC mayor in 2025, discussed topics including affordable housing and public safety.Photo by Jonathan Portee<\/p>\n Affordable Housing: \u2018Build, baby, build\u2019<\/p>\n Cuomo\u2019s plan for affordable housing centers on increasing supply in a city that has an abysmally low vacancy rate of 1%. When so few residential units are available, it shows supply is not keeping up with demand. He said the city needs to build 50,000 units a year.<\/p>\n Although that is a massive number, Cuomo said it is not hard to build. However, he argued, bureaucracy has traditionally hindered construction. For example, he said, it can take four years to get a building permit. He also said whoever is mayor should stand up to NIMBYism \u2013 when communities do not want a particular project in their neighborhoods.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Alluding to the power that the NYC Council has, a council member can stop a project at any time in their district, he said.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \u201cAnd whenever there is NIMBY, politicians stop. Why? Because they don\u2019t want to offend anyone,\u201d he said. \u201c There\u2019s going to be some woman, some man, some group, say, you know, 4201 Avenue K Group and the politicians don\u2019t want to offend that vested interest, so they back off.\u201d<\/p>\n He touted the construction projects that were built under his gubernatorial administration, including the $8 billion redesign of LaGuardia Airport in Queens as well as the first phase of the Second Avenue Subway, which added three stops in Manhattan to the Q line.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cuomo also proposed utilizing underused city-owned land for the construction of new affordable units, as well as the conversion of commercial buildings to residential use.\u00a0<\/p>\n Tackling crime in NYC<\/p>\n Crime is at the forefront of many New Yorkers\u2019 minds. Cuomo\u2019s crime-fighting strategy comes down to, notably, one thing: empowering the NYPD. This includes hiring 5,000 new police officers to the NYPD to bring it to closer to the size it was 25 years ago.<\/p>\n However, the police officer job is no longer as desirable as it once was, as evidenced by high attrition rates and a force that is overworked, underpaid, and often compelled to transfer to other law enforcement departments.<\/p>\n Cuomo\u2019s plan to fix officer morale includes paying them more, recognizing that they have, for too long, been the subject of poor public opinion.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to raise the salary,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd you have to say, \u2018I\u2019m sorry.\u2019 I get it. The defund the police demoralized you. You felt you were made to feel like you were the bad guy. You\u2019re not. We respect you. We respect your service, and we\u2019re going to pay you a competitive wage with Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, which will be about an additional $15,000 a year starting salary.\u201d<\/p>\n His vision also includes cracking down on quality-of-life crimes, tackling shoplifting, identifying repeat offenders, and increasing enforcement.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n He also wants increased accountability for e-bike and moped violations with more enforcement and holding businesses responsible for infractions.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n![\"man](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/cuomo-092625-jp.jpg\" "\\"NYC")
<\/p>\n![\"man](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/cuomo-092625-jp_0f9eb9.jpg\" "\\"NYC")
Cuomo at a press conference in Sept. 2025.Photo by Jonathan Portee<\/p>\n