Just over four years ago, I wrote a column for this newspaper correctly predicting that by antagonizing allies, the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, were in danger of losing their grip on power. Both have suffered setbacks and humiliation since. Netanyahu is well on the way to restoring his reputation. Is Andrew Cuomo poised to do the same?
At the beginning of 2021, Andrew Cuomo was riding high. He was the most popular politician in New York and was considered a possible presidential candidate. His daily briefings on COVID-19 were considered must-watch television, and he received $1 million for literally writing the book on how to deal with it. Yet he had also developed a reputation in political circles for bullying opponents and allies alike. By March, he was under investigation by the Justice Department over allegations that he sought to cover up the number of deaths from COVID in nursing homes due to his policy of forcing nursing homes to take COVID patients. When allegations of sexual harassment arose, there were few to defend him. The leaders of his own Democratic Party called for his resignation. By the end of the summer, he had left office in disgrace.
This year, Cuomo sought redemption by running for mayor of New York City. Polls showed him with a solid lead, and he spent $30 million on the campaign. He was decisively defeated in the Democratic primary by Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani.
Bibi Netanyahu is Israel’s longest-serving Prime Minister. He built Israel into an economic powerhouse, forged the Abraham Accords—under which the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco normalized relations with Israel—and created the prospect of more to come. Yet he stood accused of several corruption scandals and had antagonized many of his former allies. After a series of inconclusive elections, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman, and Gideon Saar—one-time close associates of Netanyahu who felt betrayed by him—combined with the left-wing opposition to topple him.
In the subsequent election in October 2022, Netanyahu and his allies won a clear-cut victory, and he returned as Prime Minister. But the country was soon bitterly divided as the government’s controversial proposal for judicial reform led to sometimes violent protests. The Hamas massacre of October 7, 2023, was the greatest security failure in Israel’s history. Israel was faced with a grave threat to its security on several fronts. Hostages languished in captivity as Hamas demanded the release of thousands of terrorists in exchange for their return. Large sections of the country were evacuated. As Prime Minister, Netanyahu is ultimately responsible for the performance of the national security forces and shoulders a considerable share of the blame. Polls showed that if new elections were held, Netanyahu and his allies would lose decisively.
In September 2024, Hezbollah was dealt a devastating blow when its pagers and walkie-talkies exploded. Its leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed, and Hezbollah was decisively defeated. In the course of twelve days in June, Israel and the United States dealt a devastating blow to Iran’s nuclear program and military leadership.
With Hamas severely weakened, Hezbollah defeated, and the Iranian nuclear program set back by years, Israel is safer today than ever before. Netanyahu and President Trump made the courageous decision that made this possible.
An average of polls in the race for New York City mayor shows Zohran Mamdani in the lead with 38.1% of the vote, to 25% for Cuomo, 15% for Curtis Sliwa, and 11.5% for Mayor Eric Adams. While Mamdani has a clear lead, his opponents between them have close to 50% of the vote. If they unite, Mamdani can be defeated.
The real question is who would be the strongest candidate against Mamdani. According to the Wick poll, Mamdani and Cuomo are in a dead heat, with 42% for Cuomo and 41% for Mamdani. On the other hand, Mamdani leads Mayor Adams 47%–37% and leads Sliwa 53%–35%. In the Harris X poll, Cuomo leads Mamdani 50%–35%, while Mayor Adams trails Mamdani 43%–36%.
Andrew Cuomo is far from a perfect candidate, but he appears to be the most viable alternative to Mamdani. If polls continue to show that, we should all unite behind Cuomo in order to beat Mamdani.
While Netanyahu and Cuomo are doing better, their comebacks are far from certain.
Hamas is down but not out. Fifty hostages continue to languish in captivity. While the Israeli cabinet has approved capturing Gaza City, much of the Israeli public is demanding an end to the war. Israel’s image and political support in most of the world, including the United States, has been badly damaged. The issues that have divided Israel—such as the proposed judicial reform and especially drafting Haredim into the IDF—have not gone away. Sometimes violent demonstrations have created civil discord and threaten to tear Israel apart.
A Cuomo victory in the race for mayor is far from a certainty. Mayor Adams and Sliwa have vowed never to give up. President Trump may well want them to remain in the race. Mamdani’s Republicans nationwide stand to benefit by portraying Mayor Mamdani as the face of the national Democratic Party. If the anti-Mamdani vote remains split three ways, a Mamdani victory is almost certain. Even a head-to-head race between Mamdani and Cuomo could go either way.
Will Bibi Netanyahu be remembered as the man who broke the Iranian Axis of Resistance, set back Iran’s nuclear program, and decimated Hamas and Hezbollah, making Israel safer than ever? Or will he be remembered as a divisive figure responsible for the greatest security failure in Israel’s history, who allowed our hostages to languish in captivity, and caused Israel’s reputation to plummet around the world?
Will Andrew Cuomo be remembered as someone whose leadership and perseverance after losing the primary saved New York City from a Mamdani mayoralty? Or will he be remembered as the man whose arrogance paved the way for Mamdani to become mayor?
There is more than the fate of two politicians at stake here. The future of the two largest Jewish communities in the world may well hang in the balance.
Manny Behar is the former Executive Director of the Queens Jewish Community Council and a senior aide to New York City public officials. He now lives in the Talpiot neighborhood of Jerusalem and can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
