NYC Mayor Race Splits Legal Industry Into Cuomo, Mamdani Camps

The New York City mayor’s race has divided the legal industry, with public-interest attorneys helping insurgent Zohran Mamdani make inroads against front-running former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is Big Law-backed.

The regional United Auto Workers chapter that represents the city’s 4,000 indigent legal service workers endorsed Mamdani, a Queens assemblyman and democratic socialist. Its members are now phone banking, door-knocking, and, covering their social media accounts with pro-Mamdani messaging.

Floyd Abrams, senior counsel at Cahill, on the other hand, is a bold-faced Cuomo supporter, saying the ex-governor is best-positioned to “defend the city” from President Donald Trump and crime. “Mr. Mamdani would be particularly problematic,” he added.

The roles show that lawyers, with deep pockets and strong opinions, are eager to make their mark on the June 24 Democratic primary—even if they make up only a fraction of the over 1 million New Yorkers expected to cast votes.

Cuomo is the first choice of 38% of likely Democratic voters, compared with 27% for Mamdani, according to a Marist Institute for Public Opinion poll taken June 9-12. The next mayor will have an impact on lawyers as he appoints judges to city courts and helps oversee the roughly 850 attorneys who defend the city from lawsuits or sue on its behalf.

“Each group of lawyers is in part responding to the interests of their clients,” said Stephen Gillers, an NYU legal ethics professor. “Public defenders represent poor people, whose interests differ from the wealthy clients represented by the private bar. Those interests are not necessarily inconsistent. They are just different.”

Cash for Cuomo

Opinions aren’t uniform in either legal sector, and there are other candidates in the Democratic primary. Hecker Fink partner Sean Hecker fundraised for Zellnor Myrie, and Cleary Gottlieb partner Michael A. Gerstenzang did so for Brad Lander. (On the Republican side, Curtis Sliwa is unopposed.)

But as the race comes down to the wire and polling shows a two-man contest, public defenders are pushing to get out the vote for Mamdani while high-profile private practitioners are showering Cuomo in big-dollar donations.

In June, Roberta Kaplan, who represented E. Jean Carroll against Donald Trump, donated $10,000 to a pro-Cuomo political action committee, public filings show. Kaplan’s law partner Steven M. Cohen, a longtime Cuomo ally, gave $25,000. Sullivan & Cromwell partner Sharon L. Nelles gave $10,000.

Sid Davidoff, who leads the roughly 65-attorney Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP, hosted a March fundraiser for Cuomo. “The resumes of these two candidates could not display a sharper contrast,” Davidoff said. “Cuomo has the experience needed, Mamdani does not.”

‘Public Health’ Approach

On the pro-Mamdani side, UAW Region 9A in a June 6 Instagram post urged members not to place Cuomo anywhere on the five-choice ranked ballot. “We remain steadfast in our support for ranking Zohran Mamdani first,” it said.

The message was reposted by the Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys, a UAW subchapter that represents lawyers at groups like the Legal Aid Society and Brooklyn Defender Services.

Allies of the union have gotten in on the action too. Five Boro Defenders, an association of New York public defenders and civil rights attorneys, sent out a voter guide encouraging its members not to rank Cuomo.

“We strongly support Mamdani’s candidacy because of his public health approach to safety and commitment to reducing reliance on the police in situations where social workers or mental health professionals are better equipped to respond,” said Naila Siddiqui, an appellate public defender who’s a member of the Five Boro Defenders.