Give us a brake.
Self-proclaimed auto enthusiast Andrew Cuomo was ripped online Wednesday for a “cringe” new campaign video where he purports to help a man jump-start a car in an unstaged New York City moment.
The footage crashed and burned, with observers bashing everything from the Big Apple mayoral hopeful’s jumper cable technique to the “clumsy” handshake he gives the car’s driver.
“Speaking directly to whoever is managing your campaign ads, these are more and more embarrassing one after another,” user samisclam wrote of the campaign video, which was posted to Cuomo’s Instagram account Tuesday.
“This is so cringe and inauthentic,” wrote user tianaco.
The video, launched to drum up support for Cuomo’s independent mayoral run, comes just weeks after his Democratic Party primary defeat to democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani.
It shows the pol setting up jumper cables then climbing behind the wheel to start the car as its apparent owner flashes him a relieved grin.
“Start your engines…Together we can fix this city,” the ad declares.
But car-savvy observers quickly latched onto the way Cuomo attached the jumper cables, saying he could have started a fire if the video was really authentic.
“You connect the negative of the jump car to the chassis of the dead car, not the battery terminal, otherwise you could cause a fire,” X user TheHitPoncho wrote, adding “More evidence that Cuomo is dangerous for New Yorkers.”
Others predicted his bid for mayor, following his scandal-plague history as governor, would be a bumpy road.
“Clearly you’re not a quitter but you really should be,” user brookey4ng said.
“Help us by staying home in Westchester and picking up a hobby,” pleaded Instagram user Avec.davey.
At the end of the roughly 30 second video Cuomo gives the man a handshake-high five that social media users blasted as awkward and forced.
“I’ve seen car crashes smoother than whatever that handshake was,” Instagram user yomikeson commented.
Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said the ex-governor is actually a “trained mechanic,” and spotted the driver-in-need on the street after filming his campaign relaunch video. Cuomo opted to help the New Yorker with his car trouble, as he’s done many other times, according to Azzopardi.
“This is silly. The governor put himself through law school driving a town truck. Thanks, but no thanks to the online advice,” Azzopardi said.
Republican candidate for mayor Curtis Sliwa slammed Cuomo for taking cars rather than the subway like many New Yorkers do.
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“Some prefer motorcades, but I take the subway and ride with the people,“ Sliwa posted to X Tuesday afternoon.
Another campaign ad released by the Cuomo campaign Monday was widely criticized for its lack of energy and clear messaging.
That video, which appeared to be shot on the same day as the car trouble video, showed Cuomo standing in a park, discussing affordability and New York’s future while criticizing Mamdani for offering “slick slogans, but no real solutions.”
Dan Pfeiffer, a former adviser to Barack Obama and co-host of the popular podcast “Pod Save America,” called the video “one of the least compelling campaign videos that I have ever seen.” He blasted Cuomo for a lack of charisma, message clarity and engaging visuals in a post on X.
Pfeiffer described Cuomo as “a visibly annoyed man wearing an ill-fitting shirt saying things he clearly doesn’t believe.”
Azzopardi hit back at Pfeiffer’s comments.
“If the insular Pod Saves America guys don’t like something, it must mean we’re on the right track,” he said.
Users also called out the ad for being inauthentic because it showed a visible boom mic.
“Why’s there a boom mic in the top right corner on this very ‘organic meeting with constituents’ on the street video,” user CantEverDie asked on X.
Commenters said the new videos were pushing them away from supporting Cuomo’s independent run.
“Watching this just made me like Zohran even more,” thelightfastness commented on the campaign’s Instagram post.
“Can’t wait to vote Mamdani, again!” Instagram user lariscious commented.
Additional reporting by Natalie O’Neill
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