Andrew Cuomo heckled by protesters in Mamdani gear during mosque visit

Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani didn’t claim the protesters who wore T-shirts with his name on them as they heckled his opponent, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, during a mosque visit in Queens on Friday.

“We did not orchestrate this protest,” Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor, told reporters on Friday, following allegations from Cuomo’s campaign suggesting as much. Some of the protesters – who yelled “shame on you” and “you are a criminal” at Cuomo as he entered the Masjid Mission Center in Jamaica – wore T-shirts and pins bearing Mamdani’s campaign logo and also yelled “vote Zohran.” They continued some of that heckling during Cuomo’s remarks inside the mosque, video from Pix11’s Henry Rosoff shows. 

“The bearing of the name of our campaign – on T-shirts, clothes, hats – these are things that have been created by many across the five boroughs,” Mamdani said Friday afternoon.

Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi called Mamdani “a liar,” and slammed the protest as disrespectful. “It’s insulting that they desecrated a sacred space during their day of prayer in order to do this silly political stunt.” 

But Mamdani said that Cuomo, who is running as an independent in November’s election, has real questions to answer to the city’s Muslim communities. “The question he should be asking is, why are so many Muslim New Yorkers infuriated by his belated arrival to meeting with the community,” Mamdani said. “The answer is a record of engaging in Islamophobic rhetoric, a campaign where he sought to paint myself – as the first Muslim Democratic nominee in the history of this city – as someone to be feared.” Mamdani highlighted as one example a leaked ad that was drafted for a pro-Cuomo super PAC – which they rejected and didn’t send out – which lengthened and darkened Mamdani’s beard. Mamdani said the image played into racist tropes. 

Mamdani also said that Cuomo has to answer for volunteering last fall to join the legal defense of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – whom Mamdani has pledged to arrest if elected mayor, citing a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for war crimes committed in Gaza.

This week, Cuomo issued his most blatant call for ending the war in Gaza, while still avoiding criticizing Netanyahu. Cuomo’s support for Israel and pledge to fight antisemitism figured heavily during his campaign in the Democratic primary.

Last week marked Cuomo’s first visit to a mosque since entering the mayoral race last spring. The New York Times reported that Cuomo received a “lengthy and warm” reception from a leader of the Futa Islamic Center in the Bronx but fumbled over the Arabic greeting “Assalam Alaikum” and made a mixed impression on congregants.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, meanwhile, hosted a celebration of the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday at City Hall earlier this month, billing it as an endorsement event. Several of the attendees told reporters they were not there to endorse the mayor for reelection.

Azzopardi said that Friday’s mosque visit won’t be Cuomo’s last during the campaign. “We’ll see you out there,” he said.