New York Gov. Cuomo defeats Cynthia Nixon easily in bitter battle

ALBANY, N.Y. — After a bitter six-month battle, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo easily beat back a primary challenge from his left flank from actress Cynthia Nixon.

The Associated Press called the race for Cuomo at 9:30 p.m. EDT, a half hour after polls closed. Cuomo had an early 65.9 percent to 34.1 percent lead with about a quarter of the vote counted.

For the governor, who is seeking a third term, it was his toughest electoral battle since taking office as it became another battle in New York and nationally between the energized progressive wing of the Democratic Party and establishment Democrats like Cuomo.

Cuomo will now go on to face Republican Marc Molinaro in a race some predict will be less difficult given the state’s heavy Democratic enrollment.

“The arrows are pointing in the right direction,” Cuomo told reporters after voting at his Westchester County polling station. “I want to keep that going. And I want to keep up the battle against these Washington policies that will erode the fundamental foundation of what we’re about.”

The primary battle with Nixon was one of several in New York that pitted establishment Democrats against insurgents from the left-wing of the party.

While even those close to her were preparing for a big loss to Cuomo, Nixon before the polls closed predicted the progressive movement that has sparked major upsets nationally and in New York, including in Queens where Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated longtime Rep. Joseph Crowley, will roll on.

“This is not just a moment in time,” Nixon said Thursday morning on upstate public radio’s “The Capitol Pressroom.” “I think this is a movement and I think it is a movement to make sure that the Democratic Party is not just a kinder gentler, more diverse version of the Republican Party. People don’t show up when we’re not clear about who we are and what we fight for.”

“This is a movement because Donald Trump is doing so much harm to our country and our values,” she added. “But one of the good things that he has inadvertently done is he has gotten the progress movement on the move and people are getting involved in ways they never have before.

“It’s not the end, it really is the beginning.”

Four years ago, Cuomo barely acknowledged his primary challenge from underfunded and little-known Fordham Law Professor Zephyr Teachout, who was in a fourway primary for attorney general Thursday night.

But this year, with the progressive wing of the Democratic party energized against President Trump and a string of upsets nationally and in New York — particularly in Queens where Democratic socialist Ocasio-Cortez defeated Crowley, Cuomo took no chances.

He dipped into his massive fundraising account, spending more than $16 million and blanketing the airways with ads.

Nixon couldn’t compete. She raised roughly $2.5 million, mostly through small donations. Without the money to launch a statewide ad campaign, she relied heavily on digital and social media. She also benefited from huge amounts of free media due to her celebrity.