The DOJ Has Opened Criminal Investigation Into High-Profile Democrat
NYC mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo has called the criminal probe “lawfare and election interference.”
The Justice Department has launched a criminal investigation into former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is currently leading the New York City mayor’s race.
The DOJ is reportedly weighing charges against Cuomo for false statements made to Congress about COVID-era nursing home deaths.
According to The New York Times, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C., opened the probe roughly a month ago. It centers on Cuomo’s June 2024 interview with the House COVID subcommittee, during which he allegedly downplayed nursing home deaths in New York during the pandemic.
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) accused Cuomo of overseeing a July 2020 audit that undercounted senior care facility deaths by 46%. Comer referred Cuomo for prosecution last year, but then-Attorney General Merrick Garland declined to act.
Cuomo’s spokesperson Rich Azzopardi dismissed the investigation as “lawfare and election interference,” insisting the former governor testified truthfully and calling the leak politically motivated.
“Governor Cuomo testified truthfully to the best of his recollection,” he said. “This is all transparently political.”
The DOJ declined to comment.
Despite the probe, Cuomo leads the New York City mayoral race.
Polls show him topping the crowded Democratic field—even though most voters hold an unfavorable view of him. A recent Marist poll found Cuomo leading with 44% in the first-choice round and winning 53–29 in the ranked-choice simulation against second-place candidate Zohran Mamdani.
Cuomo’s resilience is baffling opponents. In progressive enclaves like Park Slope, Mamdani beats him handily, yet Cuomo maintains strong support citywide, especially among Black voters.
His campaign, buoyed by a well-funded super PAC, has skirted public finance rules, costing him hundreds of thousands in matching funds. Even so, his name recognition, executive experience, and combative style keep him ahead.
So far, Cuomo’s challengers have struggled to land a blow.
City Comptroller Brad Lander has attacked Cuomo as corrupt, spending $750,000 on ads linking him to nursing home deaths and the harassment scandal that ended his governorship. Mamdani is targeting Cuomo’s big-money donors, but his campaign lacks the firepower of Cuomo’s.
Meanwhile, coordination among challengers remains elusive. Mamdani rejected Lander’s suggestion to pool funds. The Working Families Party has left key ranked-choice slots blank, indicating disillusionment with the field.
Even with widespread disapproval, no single candidate has unified the opposition—or mounted a convincing alternative.
The Democratic primary is June 24, and Cuomo’s rivals are running out of time.
Lander, Mamdani, and Adrienne Adams all claim paths to victory—through attack ads, ranked-choice maneuvering, or ground games. But none has cracked the code to bring Cuomo down.
“He’s winning, but he’s vulnerable,” said Democratic consultant Jon Paul Lupo. “The opposition is fractured. And that’s how he wins.”
Unless something breaks soon—either in the DOJ investigation or in the race’s strategy—Andrew Cuomo may be headed back to elected office, scandal and all.