Said to be mulling NYC mayor run, Andrew Cuomo joins 'dream team' to defend Netanyahu

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is part of a team of attorneys preparing a legal defense for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, bolstering his long-standing pro-Israel credentials as he reportedly weighs a run for New York City mayor next year.

Cuomo, a Democrat, is one of at least 17 attorneys assembled by Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz to defend Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as they face international charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The International Criminal Court in the Netherlands also brought similar charges against Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif.

Dershowitz listed Cuomo among the members of his “legal dream team” in a Wall Street Journal op-ed over the weekend. Dershowitz noted that the case will be tried in The Hague, but wrote that since neither the United States nor Israel recognizes the ICC’s jurisdiction, his team is motivated by “the court of public opinion.”

Cuomo confirmed his participation at a fundraising event for the National Committee for Furtherance of Jewish Education on Sunday in Manhattan.

“This is a moment when true friends stand up, shoulder to shoulder, and fight for the state of Israel,” Cuomo said, as heard in a video of his remarks posted by The Forward.

Cuomo resigned as governor in 2021 after a decade in office. Prior to that, he served a term as New York’s attorney general.

His resignation came amid sexual harassment allegations and criticism of his administration’s handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes — dual scandals that would continue to hound him should he make a new run for public office. The former governor denies the allegations against him.

While in office, Cuomo maintained a staunchly pro-Israel record, traveling to Jerusalem and meeting with Netanyahu while regularly speaking out against antisemitism.

He’s since remained in the public eye and is flirting with a return to electoral politics – all while continuing to bolster his pro-Israel credentials. He recently changed his voting address to an apartment in Manhattan ahead of next year’s mayoral election, when Mayor Eric Adams — who is currently under indictment — is up for re-election.

After large-scale college protests erupted against Israel’s response to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Cuomo and his allies — including Steven M. Cohen, his former top aide — launched a nonprofit called Never Again NOW!, which crafted an advertisement blasting protesters and accusing them of being sympathetic to Hamas.

It's been widely rumored Cuomo is considering a run for mayor. On Tuesday, Jewish Insider reported that Cuomo is preparing to launch a mayoral bid soon, citing anonymous sources familiar with the effort. Gothamist has not confirmed the details of the rumored launch.

In a statement, Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said speculation over a Cuomo mayoral run is “premature.” Then he rattled off a list of the governor’s accomplishments.

“New Yorkers know it was Gov. Cuomo who raised wages for hundreds of thousands of workers, codified Roe v. Wade into state law before the Supreme Court overturned it, put the strongest gun protections and paid family leave laws in the nation on the books and built projects previously declared impossible, such as the Moynihan train station, the new LaGuardia and JFK airports, the Second Avenue subway and the Kosciuszko Bridge, all while cutting taxes and reining in spending,” Azzopardi said.

Cuomo’s potential opponents in a Democratic mayoral primary wasted little time criticizing him.

Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, a Queens Democrat who is running for mayor, has been highly critical of Netanyahu and Israel’s actions in Gaza. In an interview with Gothamist, he blasted Cuomo for working with Dershowitz to defend the Israeli prime minister.

“It's hard to imagine anything more sordid than our disgraced former governor teaming up with Donald Trump's impeachment lawyer to defend a war criminal, but apparently this is the company Andrew Cuomo wants to keep,” Mamdani said.

Mamdani has said that if he were mayor, he would have Netanyahu arrested if he came to New York City, compliant with the International Criminal Court charges.

In a statement responding to the Jewish Insider report, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander — another mayoral candidate — accused Cuomo of eyeing public office to fulfill his “own personal revenge fantasies.”

“The last thing New Yorkers need right now is another agent of corruption and chaos,” Lander said.