With the town’s mayoral election racing into the house stretch, Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani and Impartial candidate Andrew Cuomo on Sunday held rallies in Queens to make pitches to voters forward of the November common election — every making a case for his or her power and their opponent’s weak spot.
Cuomo, a former New York governor, held a “rally to support the Jewish state of Israel” in Kew Gardens, interesting to the neighborhood’s massive Jewish group. About 300 individuals attended the rally, held on the Kew Gardens Hills Library on Vleigh Place.
Cuomo’s message to the group was easy — that he stands with the Jewish individuals of New York and that Mamdani, if elected, will current a menace to Jewish New Yorkers.
“We fundamentally resent the idea that a mayor of New York would be a divisive force. What [Mamdani] has done, the offense he has shown to the Jewish community, he should be ashamed of himself,” Cuomo stated to the group.
Rebecca White / New York Each day Information
Andrew Cuomo speaks to an viewers in Flushing, Queens on Sunday. (Rebecca White / New York Each day Information)
Cuomo zeroed in on the Democratic candidate’s youth and comparative lack of expertise — a stance he’s taken all through the race.
“You need a mayor who knows how to make government work, and I have done that all my life,” he stated, distinguishing himself from Mamdani, “who’s never worked a real job in his life.”
Cuomo additionally addressed the town’s affordability and housing crises, and reiterated his plan to rent 5,000 extra law enforcement officials.
“I think he came out very strong for pro-Jewish values. I really appreciate that and respect that,” stated rally attendee Hershel Peiser, 23. Peiser, a scholar at Touro College, stated public security is “easily” his prime precedence — and that he intends to vote for Cuomo.
“I think he is the best candidate for the city for the Jewish community,” Peiser stated.
Attendee Rabbi Gary Moskowitz, 68, additionally stated his No. 1 problem is public security. “You have a fiduciary responsibility … to protect your citizens,” Moskowitz stated. “If you can’t do that, there’s nothing left.”
Moskowitz, a former NYC police officer who as soon as acquired an award from Cuomo’s father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, stated he’s supporting Cuomo “for two reasons.”
“He has a lot of experience with the government, and if he does some bad things, OK. No one’s going to have a perfect record. That’s the first thing,” Moskowitz stated. Cuomo resigned from the governorship in 2021 after a number of girls accused him of sexual harassment. He has additionally acquired criticism for his dealing with of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Second one, Mamdani’s an absolute danger to the Jewish community,” Moskowitz charged. He expressed dismay on the rally’s low attendance.
Julian Roberts-Grmela / New York Each day Information
Folks attend a Zohran Mamdani rally at Forest Hills Stadium on Sunday, October 26, 2025. (Julian Roberts-Grmela / New York Each day Information)
In Forest Hills, Mamdani supporters packed Forest Hills Stadium for a 5 p.m. “New York is Not For Sale,” rally. By the point Mamdani took the stage at 8:30 p.m., he stated about 13,000 individuals had proven up.
“New York is not for sale,” Mamdani advised the group.
“And now, as we stand on the precipice of taking this city back, from corrupt politicians and the billionaires that fund them, let our words ring out so loud tonight that Andrew Cuomo can hear them at his $8,000 a month apartment,” he stated. “Let them ring so loud so that he can hear us even if he’s in Westchester this evening. Let them ring so loud that his puppet master in the White House hears us. New York is not for sale.”
Impartial Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez additionally spoke on the rally, as did Gov. Hochul and different New York politicians. A number of instances attendees interrupted Hochul’s remarks particularly, chanting “Tax the rich!” prompting Hochul to reply: “We hear you.”
Sanders urged attendees to disregard the dimensions of the rally — and polling.
“Do not underestimate our opponents,” Sander warned. “Forget about the polls,” and go in “assuming that you are five points behind,” he advised the group.
Mamdani struck an identical chord in his remarks.
“We cannot allow complacency to infiltrate this movement,” he advised the group. “So over these nine final days, I ask for only one thing from each of you: More. I ask for more because that is the only way that we win a future of more.”
Lander additionally recounted that “on primary night, Zohran made a commitment to reach out to people who disagree with them, and since then, I have seen him keep that promise in dozens of meetings with rabbis and Jewish leaders in house parties, in synagogues, at town halls, at Rosashana and Yom Kiport services.”
ANGELA WEISS/AFP through Getty Photos
Senator Bernie Sanders (left) and Consultant Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (proper) converse at a marketing campaign rally for Zohran Mamdani at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens on Sunday evening. (Photograph by ANGELA WEISS/AFP through Getty Photos)
Jesse Sachs, 36, attended the rally after casting his poll for Mamdani throughout early voting, which opened Saturday.
“I love the energy here,” he stated.
Sachs, who’s Jewish, stated he felt a accountability to show up for Mamdani, whose positions on Israel have come below fireplace as antisemitic. “I think I speak for a lot of people when I say that … you have a responsibility to be here, to kind of show people that, look, Zohran has a lot of Jewish support.”
Initially Printed: October 26, 2025 at 7:02 PM EDT
