Cuomo asked Paladino for her endorsement – but she won’t give it

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo called Republican New York City Council Member Vickie Paladino Wednesday afternoon asking for her to pull her endorsement of Curtis Sliwa and endorse him instead. 

The call asking her to switch her endorsement from Sliwa to Cuomo comes after her GOP council colleague Inna Vernikov did on Tuesday. And Rep. Mike Lawler backed Cuomo over Sliwa earlier Wednesday, too. Meanwhile, the Cuomo camp has, in recent weeks, attempted to appeal to Sliwa voters, seemingly in hopes of cutting into front-runner Zohran Mamdani’s lead. According to the latest Quinnipiac poll, 45% of likely Republican voters say they’d vote for Cuomo while 44% would vote for Sliwa.

Paladino, who is known for her often offensive right-wing online rhetoric and outspoken nature, is openly pro-Trump. She’s popular with suburban MAGA folks in her Whitestone, Queens, district, but her endorsement would also repulse the never-Trump, liberal voters in the area. 

“As (a) rule we don't discuss private conversations, but we are building a coalition of Democrats, independents and Republicans from every corner of this great city who want safe streets, a strong education system and a livable New York for all,” Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi told City & State via text. 

Paladino confirmed the conversation in a statement to City & State. “I enjoyed my conversation with Governor Cuomo, we covered a lot of good ground and appreciated the call. There are points of agreement we share, and should he be elected I feel we’d have a productive working relationship.” She added, however, that she is “definitely not endorsing him.”