In a political twist few saw coming, President Donald Trump is urging New Yorkers to vote for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) — not the Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa — in the city’s mayoral race. Trump’s reason? He says the priority is stopping far-left Democrat Zohran Mamdani, whose platform he warns would lead New York City into “a Complete and Total Economic and Social Disaster.”
Posting on Truth Social, Trump made his case clear:
“It is my obligation to run the Nation, and it is my strong conviction that New York City will be a Complete and Total Economic and Social Disaster should Mamdani win. His principles have been tested for over a thousand years, and never once have they been successful. I would much rather see a Democrat, who has had a Record of Success, WIN, than a Communist with no experience and a Record of COMPLETE AND TOTAL FAILURE.”
The former president acknowledged that Cuomo — despite past controversy — “has had a Record of Success” and is at least a proven leader, unlike Mamdani, whom he described as “nothing as an Assemblyman,” ranked “at the bottom of the class.”
“We must also remember this — A vote for Curtis Sliwa (who looks much better without the beret!) is a vote for Mamdani,” Trump added. “Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice. You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job. He is capable of it, Mamdani is not!”
Trump’s unusual endorsement has rattled the city’s political landscape — but it underscores a growing reality in deep-blue urban politics: sometimes the battle isn’t left versus right, but sanity versus socialism.
Mamdani, an outspoken progressive from Queens and self-described socialist, has championed city-run grocery stores and proposals to replace police responses with “mental health experts” for certain crimes — ideas that have drawn sharp criticism for prioritizing ideology over public safety.
Even some of New York’s most prominent elites are siding with Trump’s assessment. Elon Musk posted on X, “Remember to vote tomorrow in New York! Bear in mind that a vote for Curtis is really a vote for Mumdumi or whatever his name is. VOTE CUOMO!” Billionaire Michael Bloomberg has also thrown his support behind Cuomo.
According to a recent AtlasIntel poll (Oct. 31–Nov. 2) of 2,404 likely voters, Mamdani leads with 43.9%, Cuomo follows with 39.4%, and Sliwa trails at 15.5%. But in a head-to-head matchup, Cuomo would narrowly edge out Mamdani, 49.7% to 44.1%.
Mamdani responded defiantly to Trump’s remarks, telling Fox News his administration would be “prepared not only for the threats from Donald Trump, but also the threats from an affordability crisis.”
Still, Trump’s message to New Yorkers was unmistakable: this race isn’t about party loyalty — it’s about saving America’s biggest city from another radical experiment.
