US President Donald Trump has supported Andrew Cuomo in the New York City mayor’s race, encouraging voters not to choose left-wing front-runner Zohran Mamdani.

“Regardless of your opinion of Andrew Cuomo, you should support him and believe he’ll do a great job,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday evening. “He’s capable of it—Mamdani isn’t.”

Responding to Trump’s lukewarm backing on the eve of the highly watched race, former New York representative Cuomo said, “He’s not supporting me. He’s restricting Mamdani.”

The president previously said he would hesitate to provide more than the minimum level of federal funding to New York if Mamdani wins the election.

Opinion surveys demonstrate that Mamdani, the democratically chosen one, is ahead of Cuomo, who is running as a free after Mamdani bested him in the Equitable election. The Republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa, trails behind.

Trump, too, a Republican, declined to support Sliwa in his post, saying, “A vote for Curtis Sliwa … is a vote for Mamdani.”

The president said, “I am very unlikely to provide any federal funding beyond the bare minimum required if voters elect Mamdani.”

These resounded comments Trump made in a TV interview on Sunday, in which he erroneously alluded to Mamdani as a “communist.”

“It’s going to be difficult for me as the president to donate a part of the cash to New York,” Trump said. “Since if you have a communist running New York, all you’re doing is squandering the cash you’re sending there.”

Responding to Trump’s comments on Monday, Mamdani said he would “address that danger for what it is: it is a danger. It is not the law.”

The Trump organization has repeatedly attempted to cut government awards and subsidies for ventures primarily found in Democratic-run states. New York City has gotten $7.4bn (£5.7bn) in government financing this fiscal year.

On Monday, Mamdani said the MAGA movement’s support for Andrew Cuomo shows Trump believes Cuomo would serve him best.

“Not the best leader for New York City or its people,” Mamdani added, “but the best for Donald Trump.”

In his 60 Minutes interview on Sunday, Trump said Mamdani would make former mayor Bill de Blasio “look great.”

“I saw how bad de Blasio was,” Trump said. “Mamdani would do even worse.”

Trump grew up in the New York borough of Queens and still claims property in the city.

“I’m not a fan of Cuomo,” the Republican president told CBS. “But between a bad Democrat and a Communist, I’ll always choose the Democrat.”

Mamdani describes himself as a democratic socialist. He has denied being a communist. In a TV interview, he joked that he was “like a Scandinavian politician, only browner.”

If elected, he would be the city’s first Muslim mayor and its youngest in over a century.

The 34-year-old state assemblyman has called Cuomo, the previous New York representative, a manikin and parrot of Trump.

“The response to a Donald Trump administration is not to mirror it in City Hall,” Mamdani said on Monday.

“We need an alternative that reflects what New Yorkers truly want—a city that values the dignity of everyone who calls it home.”

Cuomo has pushed back, presenting himself as the experienced candidate best suited to handle the Trump administration.

During that period, he served as New York’s governor; meanwhile, many states clashed with the Trump administration. Furthermore, his leadership came under scrutiny after investigators accused his administration of downplaying nursing home deaths during the outbreak.

“I fought against Donald Trump,” Cuomo said during a discussion. “When I’m battling for New York, I am not going to stop.”

“However,” is usually the best fit for political news writing—it adds contrast and authority, keeps the tone neutral, and improves readability.