The major upset put the Democratic Party establishment on high alert — but Cuomo may not be out of the race just yet.
His campaign said last month that he would run on the independent “Fight and Deliver” ballot line in November regardless of the June 24 primary’s outcome — which saw the thrice-elected Dem trail the 33-year-old Queens assemblyman by a near-insurmountable 7 points.
The ex-gov is keeping his options open for now, rep Richard Azzopardi told The Post after Cuomo conceded to Mamdani Tuesday night.
“I want to look at all the numbers as they come in and analyze the rank choice voting,” Cuomo later said in a written statement.
“I will then consult with my colleagues on what is the best path for me to help the City of New York, as I have already qualified to run for mayor on an independent line in November.”
Cuomo’s campaign said in a statement in May that the ex-governor planned to run on the independent line to appeal to a wider voting bloc of “disillusioned Democrats, as well as to independents and Republicans.”
He would join a crowded field that includes Mamdani and longtime Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, who will appear on the ballot again after scrounging up just 28% of the vote in 2021.
Current Mayor Eric Adams, who opted to forgo the Democratic primary to run as an independent, would be Cuomo’s largest hurdle to Gracie Mansion as they share many of the same core values.
Attorney Jim Walden is also running as an independent candidate.
Adams has criticized Cuomo’s decision to challenge him as an independent.
In a “Fox & Friends” appearance Wednesday morning, the mayor said: “Cuomo should realize that ‘time has moved on’” from him — as he compared Mamdani’s campaign promises to those of a “snake oil salesman.”
“Cuomo can’t come out on weekends, go to a black church, eat some fried chicken, and all of a sudden say that ‘I have the black vote,’ ‘I have the working-class people vote’ — it’s is just not the reality,” Adams said.
“People know if you want the job. He didn’t want the job.”
“Cuomo can’t come out on weekends, go to a black church, eat some fried chicken, and all of a sudden say that ‘I have the black vote,’ ‘I have the working-class people vote’ — it’s is just not the reality,” Adams said.
Cuomo conceded the mayoral Democratic primary to Mamdani after first-choice results in the city’s ranking system showed the two-term state lawmaker notching a significant lead.
With over 96% of Democratic primary votes counted by Wednesday morning, Mamdani held a commanding 43.5% lead over Cuomo’s 36.4% — or just over 70,000 votes.
Trailing in third behind them was city Comptroller Brad Lander with 11.3%.
More than 993,500 New Yorkers cast their vote in the mayoral primary, according to the latest board tally.
All of the ranked-choice voting results are expected to be counted by July 1.
Democratic sources said Mamdani and his campaign outhustled Cuomo in the final weeks ahead of the primary, despite $25 million funneled into a pro-Cuomo Fix The City super PAC and dozens of labor unions supporting him.