Andrew Cuomo’s absent campaign is another sign of arrogance

Andrew Cuomo is running for New York City mayor, but it feels like he’s running away from New Yorkers.

Where the hell is that guy?

With early voting now underway ahead of June 24’s Democratic primary, New York’s embattled former governor has barely shown his face, save for two debates and a photo op at the Puerto Rican Day Parade on June 8. He’s held no real rallies, had no big presence interacting with voters — and he’s been ducking the media like a fugitive avoiding the law. Cuomo’s built a moat around himself.

Remember, this is a former camera magnet who, for 111 days straight during pandemic lockdown, happily hosted his own variety show — I mean press conferences — to the delight of his now disbanded army of Cuomosexuals. He once claimed 59 million people were tuning in.

Now the wannabe mayor has disappeared into a cloud of his own arrogance. He seems so convinced that, despite all of his political scandals, he’s got the Dem nomination in the bag and doesn’t need to lift a finger for it.

His entitlement is, frankly, off-putting (and all too familiar).

Cuomo’s invisibility has become such a joke that, last week, New York Magazine posted a video with all the Dem hopefuls interviewed over plates of spaghetti and meatballs — except the lone Italian.

You see Adrienne Adams, Comptroller Brad Lander and, of course, the ubiquitous Zohran Mamdani answer questions … then the camera cuts to a cardboard cutout of Cuomo smirking above the caption “declined to respond.”

It might as well have been accompanied by cricket sounds.

Cuomo is most present in my inbox, where sporadic emails announce endorsements.

While he spoke to Al Sharpton’s National Action Network about Donald Trump the bad orange man over the weekend, Cuomo rarely has a public schedule — and his spokesperson hasn’t bothered to respond to my multiple questions about when or if I can see the man in action.

Maybe a few months ago, when Cuomo was seen as the only serious contender in the field and blowing away the competition in every poll, an invisibility cloak would have been a sound policy. Keep quiet and dodge the media, who would surely ask questions about his fall from gubernatorial grace — including COVID policies that were blamed for more than 13,000 nursing home deaths, and his 2021 resignation after multiple women accused him of sexual harassment.

But something happened as he was seemingly skating to victory: a shiny new (and dangerous) object named Mamdani filled the vacuum.

The rapper turned “defund the police” champion turned Democratic Socialist of America candidate has gained major steam in the polls — effectively boobytrapping Cuomo’s once-unobstructed route to City Hall.

Mamdani has raised millions of dollars via small donations and built a strong ground game of devoted zombie canvassers who are urging voters not to rank Cuomo at all. Various ranked-choice voting analyses have shown this could end up doing real damage to the former gov, and the other Dem candidates are cross-endorsing with Mamdani to further block Cuomo.

Mamdani has earned the endorsement of progressive firebrand Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — and there’s talk that he could replicate her grand upset of congressional Dem stalwart Joe Crowley back in 2018.

He may be woefully unqualified to run the city, but the social media influencer is good at one thing: being in everyone’s face. Mamdani has churned out ad after zippy ad in multiple languages, always smiling like a used car salesman as he promises a socialist utopia in the Big Apple.

It’s all made Cuomo’s “I got this“ absence seem even more conspicuous.

When Donald Trump avoided the primary scrum in the 2024 election, he was at least extremely present at rallies, speaking directly to the base and building his martyrdom and candidacy on the steam of four indictments. He worked a parallel campaign route — one that Cuomo is seemingly unwilling to carve.

But hey, if he doesn’t show his face or interact with voters or reporters, he doesn’t get pushed on his past indiscretions and political sins.

A few months ago, between the Dem’s anemic talent pool and incumbent Mayor Adams dealing with his own basket of dirty laundry, Cuomo’s return to public office felt inevitable. It was mostly revived because the new left has abandoned common sense, and New Yorkers — having lived through years of out-of-control homelessness, surging subway crime and general disorder that favored criminals and the criminally insane — want to keep this city moving back in the right direction.

But thanks to our blisteringly fast and disposable online culture, we have short memories these days. Mamdani’s socialism seduction, and his efforts to show up every damn day, could produce a spoiler scenario as polls close — and not just to Cuomo’s chance at redemption. More importantly, to New York City’s future.

Cuomo is taking victory for granted. And it feels like he’s taking New Yorkers for granted, too.