Copyright Newsweek
Conservative influencer Emily Austin has launched a new campaign ahead of the New York City mayoral election, "Hot Girls for Cuomo," a coalition of "hot" women who support former Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo’s bid in the race. The movement, though, has not come without challenges. As of press time, the web address hotgirlsforcuomo.com redirects to the New York attorney general’s investigation into sexual harassment allegations made against Cuomo in 2021. Cuomo denied any wrongdoing, but later stepped down as governor in August of 2021, after leading New York during the COVID-19 pandemic. Newsweek contacted Emily Austin outside of regular working hours via email for comment. Why It Matters The 2025 New York City mayoral election is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched political contests in the United States. Running against Cuomo is Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old Muslim Democratic socialist from Queens. Mamdani’s candidacy has reverberated nationally and has significant implications for the future of progressive policy and national politics. If elected, he would become the first Muslim mayor of New York City. He has been frequently criticized and with attacks coming from high-profile conservatives, including President Donald Trump. What To Know Austin announced the movement in a video shared to YouTube, during which she interviews Cuomo, who is running as an independent in the election. A clip of this was later shared to X, where it has circulated widely and, as of press time, amassed over 5 million views. The video, titled “Andrew Cuomo Joins the Emily Austin Show | AI Erotica, NBA Streaming Chaos & NYC Election Breakdown,” sees Austin both interview Cuomo and speak about the election more generally. “Let’s be honest, Curtis Sliwa needs to drop out,” Austin says in the video. “If you actually wanna help Republicans win New York, you need to make space for Cuomo to overtake Mamdani,” she says, before adding, “I know he’s not the ideal candidate.” She later describes Sliwa as a “wonderful guy, but says he won’t win the election." Curtis Sliwa is a conservative activist, founder of the Guardian Angels crime-prevention organization and the Republican Party's mayoral candidate in New York City. “I was reluctant to meet with Andrew Cuomo,” she says. “I was not a big fan of him, not politically, not personally.” She then says that Cuomo is “actually very likable,” having now met him, before announcing that she is “officially” starting "Hot Girls for Cuomo." “If you are a hot girl for Andrew Cuomo, I wanna hear from you,” Austin says. The video then cuts to her interview with the former governor. The launch of the movement was somewhat complicated by the web address hotgirlsforcuomo.com being purchased by another individual. The website links to a report which found that Cuomo had “sexually harassed a number of current and former New York State employees by, among other things, engaging in unwelcome and nonconsensual touching, as well as making numerous offensive comments of a suggestive and sexual nature.” Beyond this, there has been a significant amount of backlash on social media, as users have ridiculed the move by Austin. Directing people to the website which features the report, Matt Bernstein, a social media influencer and podcast host, wrote, “Honestly, I was skeptical, but they did a good job with the website,” in a post viewed 2.9 million times. Media personality, author, and scholar Amani wrote in a response to Bernstein, viewed over 30,000 times, “LMFAOOOOOOO I would RT but I’m not trying to give this lunatic more views.” Austin responded to this, poking fun at the incident. In a post on X she shared a link to the report and wrote, “Mom look I’m trending.” Who Is Emily Austin? Austin, 24, is an American journalist and influencer with a background in sports reporting, who described herself as “conservative as it gets,” in a recent YouTube video. She has been pictured with Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Austin is Jewish and was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Israeli parents and grew up in Long Island. She is also the founder of a beauty brand and a pageant judge. What People Are Saying Emily Austin, a conservative influencer on X: “Today is a revolutionary day! 'The Emily Austin Show' has officially launched, with Andrew Cuomo joining as my first guest. In honor of this, I’m starting 'Hot Girls for Cuomo.'" Andrew Cuomo, in a post on X: “To all Republicans: New York City’s future is on the line in this election. A vote for Sliwa in this race is a vote for Mamadani [sic].” Zohran Mamdani, addressing Andrew Cuomo during the most recent New York City mayoral debate: “What I don’t have in experience, I make up for in integrity, and what you don’t have in integrity, you could never make up for in experience.” What’s Next The second and final New York City mayoral debate will take place on Wednesday, October 21. Early voting begins Saturday, October 25, with the general election taking place on Tuesday, November 4.
