Zohran Mamdani marched to the debate stage Thursday night surrounded by joyous supporters and found himself under attack in the first few minutes.
"He has no experience, and this is not a job for someone who has no management experience to run 300,000 people, no financial experience to run $115 billion budget, he literally has never had a job on his resume," Andrew Cuomo said.
Former Governor Cuomo, running as an Independent, ridiculed Mamdani as inexperienced and unqualified.
"Any day, you could have a hurricane. You're, God forbid, a 911 a health pandemic," Cuomo said.
But the Democratic nominee repeatedly tried to turn the tables on Cuomo.
"And if we have a health pandemic, then why would New Yorkers turn back to the governor who sent seniors to their death in nursing homes?" Mamdani said.
Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa hit back, over Mamdani's fervent support of Palestinian rights.
"Why wouldn't he condemn Hamas?" Cuomo said.
"Jews, don't trust that you are going to be there for them when they are victims of antisemitic attacks," Sliwa said.
Mamdani fired back.
"What I'm looking to do as the first Muslim mayor of this city is to ensure that we bring every New Yorker together, Jewish New Yorkers, Muslim New Yorkers, every single person that calls the city home," Mamdani said.
Mamdani tried to steer the debate to his signature issue.
"I just have to say it's been an hour and 20 minutes of this debate, and we haven't heard Governor Cuomo say the word affordability," he said.
But Mamdani struggled to explain how he would pay for his policies, and Cuomo tried to cast them as unrealistic.
"The assemblyman's whole plan is based on a myth," Cuomo said. "He's going to raise taxes. Albany is going to raise taxes statewide on corporations, but the money is only going to go to New York City. That could never happen. It's not just that the governor wouldn't support it. It's impossible."
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