Cuomo, Lander scrap over Israel as antisemitism emerges as NYC mayoral election issue

As a progressive Democratic candidate for mayor, Brad Lander has faced scrutiny over his stances on the Israel-Hamas war and his commitment to protecting Jewish New Yorkers.

Now, the self-described liberal Zionist is forcefully pushing back against opponents in the race who he says are weaponizing Jewish voters’ concerns about a spike in antisemitic hate crimes and instances of bigotry at widespread campus protests. Politicians, he said, are wrongly equating criticism of Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza with antisemitism.

“Somehow, we Jews have become political pawns for politicians trying to score political points,” Lander said during a speech Wednesday night at the West Side Institutional Synagogue. “While most of us in this room consider ourselves Zionist, as I do, it's factually inaccurate to equate anti-Zionism with antisemitism."

The speech was the latest sign that antisemitism and the ongoing war in the Middle East will remain at the center of the mayoral race as the primary approaches. Cuomo, who is the front-runner according to polls, and Mayor Eric Adams are staunch defenders of Israel who are vying for Orthodox and conservative Jewish voters — a key voting bloc for any citywide candidate.

Adams plans to run as an independent in November on two ballot lines, one of which is called “EndAntisemitism.” Cuomo recently joined a symbolic "legal team" defending Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from war crimes charges.

On the other end of the spectrum, Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, maintains that Israel is committing genocide and called for a permanent ceasefire. He introduced a bill in the state Assembly that would make it illegal for nonprofits to fund groups tied to “Israeli war crimes.”

Lander opposes Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza and also called for a permanent ceasefire. He has been critical of some pro-Palestinian responses to the war, including a rally in Times Square where demonstrators were celebrating the day after the attacks.

Conservatives have accused both Mamdani and Lander of antisemitism. But both candidates are still trying to appeal to the wide spectrum of Jewish voters.

“The divisions have been starker since October 7,” said Lander, who as city comptroller is New York City’s highest-ranking Jewish elected official. “People are more dug into their trenches.”

In the deeply personal speech, Lander shared his Jewish beliefs and argued President Donald Trump and Andrew Cuomo are recklessly exploiting the rise in antisemitism.

The timing of Lander’s address, which was planned in advance and lasted roughly 25 minutes, came as 80 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at Columbia University for trying to take over the library.

During an address at the same synagogue last month, Cuomo accused Lander and other left-leaning rivals of aiding the “forces of antisemitism.” The very next day, Lander struck back at Cuomo with a Yiddish profanity.

Phylisa Wisdom, who heads New York Jewish Agenda, a progressive group, said liberal Jews like Lander defy easy categorization.

“To those to our right we say yes, you can support and care about Israel and also staunchly oppose the occupation,” she said. “To those to our left we say yes, you can care deeply about Palestinian human rights and also acknowledge that antisemitism can and does exist sometimes in pro-Palestinian movement discourse.”

As a candidate, Lander has struggled to gain traction in the race. A recent Siena poll found him in third place. Only around a dozen people turned out to hear him talk on Wednesday evening.

Lander, who grew up in the Reform Judaism movement, began his speech by recalling that he almost became a rabbi. He acknowledged the simmering disagreements among Jews about how best to protect themselves against antisemitism. But he argued that their safety hinged on defending democratic principles.

While some Jews may disagree with pro-Palestinian activists like Mahmoud Khalil, Mohsen Mahdawi and Leqaa Korida, their deportations should not make Jews feel safer, Lander said.

“Our people should know better. We have had our visas revoked. We have had to flee under cover of darkness.” he said. “And we’ve also benefited from institutions of liberal higher education, even when they looked at us suspiciously. We have relied on First Amendment protections for freedom of religion.”

In response to Lander’s speech, Cuomo campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said in a statement that the governor had “passed the strongest hate crime laws in the nation” and invested “millions of dollars” in security for synagogues and yeshivas.

He accused Lander of having “spent his adult life as a card carrying member" of the anti-Israel movement and invoked his membership in the Democratic Socialists of America and their support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.

“New Yorkers know Andrew Cuomo has the record and the experience to get this city back on track and won't be fooled by Lander's feeble attempts to deflect from his record,” Azzopardi added.

Cuomo also repeated his claim that Lander, as the city's comptroller, divested the city’s pension from Israel bonds.

Dora Pekec, a spokesperson for Lander’s campaign, said the candidate allowed Israeli bond investments to expire because he elected not to invest the city’s pensions in any foreign bonds. She said that he has directed the city to invest in Israeli companies instead to obtain a higher return on investment.

Several people who showed up Wednesday evening expressed appreciation for Lander’s speech. They included Ruth Messinger, the former Manhattan borough president and mayoral candidate, and Danny Pearlstein, a policy director for the transit advocacy group Riders Alliance.

Pearlstein, a self-described secular Jew, said Lander’s political views on Israel reflected those held by many Jewish New Yorkers, but have been drowned out by more partisan voices. He denounced Cuomo for starting a pro-Israel nonprofit that has had little activity, and Adams for creating what he described as a “fake antisemitism party.”

“What do they take us for?” Pearlstein said, speaking from the audience. “Is there any other group they would pander to in this way?”

But another participant, Elisha Weisel, who is a member of the synagogue, praised the mayor’s response to that evening’s protest at Columbia.

“He put out some messaging that indicated he felt it was his job to keep Jewish students safe and to keep Columbia University operating as a space where everybody can get to class,” he said.

Weisel shrugged off Lander’s criticisms of his opponents.

“Every politician is politically opportunistic,” he replied.