Mario Matthew Cuomo (June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an Italian-American politician and lawyer who served as the 52nd governor of New York State from January 1, 1983 to December 31, 1994. A member of the Democratic Party, Cuomo also served as Lieutenant governor of New York under governor Hugh Carey from 1979 to 1982. He was known for his liberal views.
Early Life
Mario Cuomo was born on June 15, 1932, to an Italian family in Queens, New York. He was educated at St. John’s Prep School in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens.
In 1952, while attending St. John’s University, Cuomo played baseball as an outfielder. Unfortunately, he was hit in the head by a baseball and had to be hospitalised for six days.
After he recovered, Cuomo decided to quit baseball and become a lawyer. He eventually graduated in 1956 and started a law office in Brooklyn.
Cuomo would continue to be a lawyer until he retired from law in 1974 after he became New York Secretary of State.
Entry Into Politics
In 1974, Cuomo was selected to be New York’s secretary of state by governor Hugh Carey.
In 1977, Cuomo ran for Mayor in New York City. He ran in the Democratic primary against incumbent mayor Abraham Beame and US representative Ed Koch. Cuomo would lose the nomination to Koch, who ended up serving as the mayor until 1989.
In the 1978 Gubernatorial Election, incumbent governor Hugh Carey selected Cuomo to be his lieutenant governor. After Carey won the election, Cuomo became the lieutenant governor of New York.
Governorship
In 1982, Incumbent governor Hugh Carey announced that he would retire as governor. Afterward, Cuomo would run in the 1982 Election, which he won. Cuomo became the governor of New York at midnight on January 1, 1983.
During the 1984 Presidential Election, Cuomo supported Democrat nominee Walter Mondale for the presidency. During the 1984 Democratic National Convention, which was held in San Francisco, Cuomo gave a keynote address that criticized president Ronald Reagan.
Mr. President, you ought known that this nation is more a ‘Tale of Two Cities‘ than just a city on a hill.
In the 1988 Presidential Election, the Democrats considered to nominate Cuomo for president; Cuomo declined to run. The same thing would happen in the 1992 election and Cuomo was not nominated for president.
In November 1992, while visiting Italy, Cuomo was almost assassinated by the Sicilian Mafia. In order to keep him safe, Cuomo was to be protected by armed bodyguards and was transported in a bullet-proof car. The attack was then called off.
In the 1994 Gubernatorial Election, Cuomo ran for re-election to a fourth term. However, he lost re-election to Republican candidate George Pataki. After he lost the election, Cuomo, along with Texas governor Ann Richards, who was also defeated, appeared in a humorous Super Bowl advertisement for Doritos.
At midnight on January 1, 1995, Pataki was sworn in as governor, thereby ending Cuomo’s governorship.
Post-Political Career
After Cuomo left office, he retired from politics and returned to being a lawyer. He would work at the New York law firm Willkie Farr and Gallagher for the remainder of his life.
Death
On November 30, 2014, Cuomo was hospitalized for a heart condition. He was released not to long after.
On January 1, 2015, Andrew Cuomo, Mario Cuomo’s son, was sworn in for his second gubernatorial term. However, Mario Cuomo was unable to attend his son’s inauguration due to ill health.
Later that day, at 5:15 p.m., Mario Cuomo died from heart failure at his home in Manhattan. At the time his death, he was 82 years old.
Cuomo’s funeral was held at Saint Ignatius Loyola church in Manhattan on January 6th. He was laid to rest at St. John’s Cemetery in Queens, New York.
In 2017, the Tappan Zee Bridge in Tarrytown, New York, was renamed to the “Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge”.
Cuomo’s son Andrew Cuomo would serve as governor of New York from 2010 until his resignation in 2021. Cuomo’s other son Christopher is now a new anchor on the cable TV channel NewsNation.