New Yorkers faced triple-digit temperatures as they headed to the polls on Tuesday to select the Democratic nominee for mayor. Andrew Cuomo, mayoral candidate and disgraced former governor, faced a different kind of heat after he was caught speeding in his Dodge Charger four times over a 35-day period earlier this year. Ironically, then-Governor Cuomo signed the bill into law that created the city’s speed camera program in 2013.
Cuomo moved back to New York City at the start of March when he launched his mayoral campaign. His black Dodge Charger 392 has quickly become a sight around town for both residents and traffic enforcement devices. The second-generation politician still living in his father’s shadow paid $365 in fines between March 6 and May 2, according to city records compiled by the New York Post. Cuomo got two tickets within a minute while blasting up the West Side Highway, then another two in a week for speeding in Brooklyn school zones. It should be noted that Cuomo signed an expansion of the school zone coverage alongside his mother on Mother’s Day in 2019. While there’s no escape from the city’s speed cameras, Cuomo escaped any long-term repercussions for the allegations that should have derailed his campaign from the start.
Cuomo is willing to run red light to escape reporters
Cuomo’s bid to replace sidewalk driver Eric Adams in Gracie Mansion is his comeback to politics after he resigned as governor in August 2021. Cuomo was the subject of an impeachment investigation after the state’s attorney general found that he had sexually assaulted at least 11 women while in office. Despite his desire to return to elected office, he has done his best to dodge as much media scrutiny as possible. Cuomo made an illegal right turn through a red light to escape reporters in Midtown last month.
Zohran Mamdani, Cuomo’s stiffest primary opponent, has had people threaten to blow up his car despite the fact that he doesn’t own one. It was just one of several death threats received by the progressive state assembly member. The New York Police Department is taking the threats seriously, with its Hate Crimes Task Force leading the investigation because of the Islamophobic language used in the messages. The incident highlights the contract between free bus proponent Mamdani and Cuomo, who owns a 1968 Pontiac GTO, a 1975 Chevy Corvette and several other classics. There’s nothing wrong with owning a classic car. I just wish I could afford to buy one and continue to live in the city.