Cuomo stonewalled as LGBTQ groups endorse challengers despite ex-gov pushing through legal gay marriage
Mayoral frontrunner Andrew Cuomo was stonewalled from endorsements by prominent Big Apple LGBTQ groups — despite spearheading gay marriage in New York as governor.Various political clubs instead decided to back his struggling challengers, naming Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and City Comptroller Brad Lander as their top picks in a ranked-choice Democratic Party primary for mayor in June.“Not the best news Andrew Cuomo ever got,” political operative Hank Sheinkopf quipped about the snub.The endorsements come on the heels of Cuomo racking up a number of high-profile union endorsements as the former governor attempts a political comeback after resigning in 2019 amid sexual harassment allegations that he forcefully denied.
Cuomo locked down one of the city’s final powerful unions in 1199SEIU late last week.Gabriel Lewenstein, president of the Stonewall Democratic Club of NYC, skewered a “selfish” Cuomo and endorsed Adams in the June primary.“Andrew Cuomo is all about himself.We want a mayor who cares about New Yorkers,” he railed as he praised her work as speaker.“Adrienne is exactly what New York City needs right now: a leader who is tenacious, smart, and possesses a deep understanding of the challenges in our city with bold plans to fix them.”The nod follows Brooklyn’s LGBTQ political group, Lambda, which recently announced it had ranked Lander as its top choice in the crowded race, with state Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani and state Sen.
Zellnor Myrie as next picks under ranked-choice.Jim Owles Liberal LGBT Club also weighed in on the race, endorsing an unranked slate of candidates in Adams, Lander, state Sen.Jessica Ramos and Mamdani, the far-left, proud socialist who has consistently come up second in polls. Allen Roskoff, the head of Jim Owles, credited Cuomo for pushing through gay marriage, but called him “unsuitable to be mayor.
“The gay community is smart,” he said.“We’re not going to support Cuomo’s baggage.
He’s not prog...