New York City’s 2025 mayoral race is shaping up to be one of the most dramatic contests in U.S. politics. Former governor Andrew Cuomo, once a dominant figure in Democratic politics, is attempting an unlikely comeback — this time as an independent candidate hoping to reclaim public trust after his 2021 resignation amid sexual harassment allegations.
He faces a formidable challenge from Zohran Mamdani, the progressive Democratic front-runner known for his grassroots campaign focused on housing reform, public transit, and social justice.
As Cuomo’s campaign fights for relevance and redemption, a “self-proclaimed” supporter influencer Emily Austin decided to jump in to help. What happened next could have come straight from a political satire. Emily who describes herself as a “hot girl for Cuomo,” announced the launch of a cheeky grassroots movement to rally women behind the former governor’s mayoral bid.
Her plan: a campaign called “Hot Girls for Cuomo.”
Her problem: she forgot to buy the website.
Within hours of Austin’s social media announcement, hotgirlsforcuomo.com — the supposed hub for her campaign — had been snatched up by another user and redirected to the New York Attorney General’s 2021 report detailing the sexual harassment allegations that forced Cuomo from office.
Yes — the same report that ended his political career four years ago.
Austin, who has appeared at Republican events alongside Donald Trump, JD Vance, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., brushed off the blunder with humour, posting: “Mom, look, I’m trending!”
But the internet wasn’t done laughing. The misfire instantly went viral, spawning memes and headlines that underscored Cuomo’s continuing struggle to move past his scandal-stained legacy.
Meanwhile, Cuomo, trying to rebrand himself as a no-nonsense independent, was forced to watch his name trending — again — for all the wrong reasons.
