Gov. Andrew Cuomo was a no-show again in the Hamptons. Dozens of well-heeled Democrats had bought $5,000 tickets to rub elbows with the governor Saturday night at the East Hampton mansion of art dealer Larry Gagosian, where guitarist G.E. Smith was set to perform with an all-star band.
But the fund-raiser — where expected guests included David Geffen, Steve Madden and Alberto “Tico” Mugrabi — was canceled because Cuomo flew upstate to inspect devastating flooding.
“With Election Day approaching, he’d rather be seen in work boots at a disaster site, than in Gucci loafers with cocktail-sipping billionaires,” one Democrat said.
Cuomo’s office said, “Protecting New Yorkers is the governor’s top priority, and when weather reports suggested upstate – which was already walloped with devastating flooding earlier in the week – was about to get hit with bad storms once again, that became the focus on Friday and Saturday. The good news was that the forecast changed for the better.”
Cuomo was expected the night before at Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton for the close of a two-day ideas festival thrown by his sister-in-law, Cristina Greeven Cuomo, and her magazine, Hamptons Purist, with such panelists as Mary-Louise Parker, Karolína Kurková and Donna Karan. When Cuomo bailed, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul replaced him.
The governor also disappointed supporters last month when he was a no-show at a fund-raiser at Surf Lodge in Montauk, where Bitcoin billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss co-hosted. The governor’s daughters filled in for him at that fund-raiser.
But the absenteeism doesn’t diminish Cuomo’s bursting campaign coffers. He had $31 million on hand last month, compared with just $1.6 million for his Democratic rival, Cynthia Nixon.
“Most people won’t ask for their money back,” said one Hamptonite who had planned to attend. “We’d be too embarrassed.”