Curtis Sliwa accuses Cuomo campaign of trying to bribe him to quit NYC mayoral race
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- The battle for the next mayor of New York City has taken a turn as Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa publicly claimed that former Governor Andrew Cuomo has offered money to get out of the race.
Cuomo denied the claims, saying Sliwa is lying.
Sliwa stepped to the microphones on Wednesday and said the Cuomo campaign and unspecified intermediaries are offering him millions of dollars to quit the race.
"That's the way they talk, 'Come on, Curtis, everybody has their price.' Curtis Sliwa doesn't have a price," Sliwa said.
Sliwa declined to name individuals but stood by the allegations.
"It's all Cuomo. I know that I've had conversations with them. 'Oh, come on, Cuomo is a flawed candidate, we all know that. But we all have to come together in order to defeat Mamdani," Sliwa said.
Every major poll shows Sliwa running third.
The latest gives Democrat Zohran Mamdani 45% of likely voters, Andrew Cuomo with 24%, Sliwa with 17% and Mayor Adams with 9%.
Cuomo has a theoretical path to City Hall, but not in a four-way race.
On Wednesday, his campaign spokesman denied the allegations.
"Curtis Sliwa is a liar and a fraudster, who has admitted to faking crimes for publicity... This is more of the same," Rich Azzopardi said in a statement.
Sliwa went on to claim, without evidence, that Mayor Adams has also been approached.
"I anticipate at any moment Eric Adams will have determined that the price is right and he'll be bowing out," Sliwa said.
"He's a clown looking to turn New York City into a circus," Adams told Eyewitness News. "I have never been offered anything to leave the race... it's insulting to suggest otherwise."
Mamdani tried to stay above it all.
"I can tell you that of Andrew Cuomo, Eric Adams and Curtis Sliwa, I trust Curtis Sliwa's word the most. I think it speaks to the fact that New Yorkers deserve to make their own decision as to who should lead this city," Mamdani said.
Whether this ends in a two-way race is difficult to predict. But it's looking less and less likely by the day.
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