Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) announced on Wednesday that he would be endorsing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) for New York City mayor, less than a week before voters are set to decide on who will replace outgoing Mayor Eric Adams.
“I’m a Democratic Capitalist, not a Democratic Socialist. I endorse Andrew Cuomo,” Suozzi, who represents a battleground House seat on Long Island, wrote on X.
“I can not back a declared socialist with a thin resume to run the most complex city in America,” he continued. “We need leaders who will fight crime, not undermine the police. Who will create jobs, not harm the economy. Who will keep taxes down, not make it more expensive for middle class families to live here.”
Cuomo thanked Suozzi in a post on X, saying that “together we can save the city.”
New Yorkers are heading to the polls on Tuesday to choose their next mayor after Adams decided against a second run. Cuomo is running against frontrunner, Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani, and Republican Curtis Sliwa.
Adams endorsed Cuomo last week as moderates and some Republicans are looking to coalesce around the former New York governor in the final stretch of the election in their hopes of toppling the New York state assemblyman.
However, not all moderate Democrats have chosen to back Cuomo, including Rep. Laura Gillen (D-N.Y.), another Democrat who represents a battleground district on Long Island who has been vocally critical of Mamdani. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), seen as a more mainstream Democrat, has also declined to endorse Mamdani.
Meanwhile, some New York Democrats who were initially holdouts have finally thrown their backing behind the New York state assemblyman, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.).
Polling has shown that Mamdani is widely expected to beat Cuomo after beating him in the Democratic primary in June. A Decision Desk HQ polling average of surveys on the race show Mamdani at 45 percent, Cuomo at 31 percent and Sliwa at 16 percent.
