The Democratic primary for New York governor took a bizarre turn, when Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his opponent, actress Cynthia Nixon, sparred over who was the bigger liar.
During the sole debate of the heated primary race, Cuomo demanded that Nixon stop interrupting him when he was answering debate questions.
“Excuse me, can you stop interrupting?” Cuomo asked.
“Can you stop lying?” Nixon replied.
“Yeah, as soon as you do,” Cuomo shot back, as the audience laughed.
Overall, The New York Times declared the debate a draw–saying that there was “no knockout blow for either candidate,” which they cite as “more damaging to the chances of Ms. Nixon,” who was banking on seizing momentum.
Nixon has received widespread media attention for her campaign–and her willingness to take on Cuomo from the left. But so far, it hasn’t translated to actual support from voters.
In the two most recent polls of the race, the former “Sex and the City” star trails the sitting governor by 31 points and 36 points.
But those polls came before Cuomo made an unforced error–saying that “America was never great” while speaking at an event earlier this month. Cuomo, who is seen as a likely candidate for the 2018 Democratic presidential nomination, was attacked for his comments by both the left and the right.
New York voters will go to the polls to pick their favorite liar on September 13.
