An aide for New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon (D) reached out to the host of an upcoming debate with Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) to pre-empt any effort to chill the room, The New York Times reported Tuesday.
Rebecca Katz, a top strategist for Nixon’s campaign, emailed WCBS-TV last week asking that the temperature at the debate on Wednesday be maintained at 76 degrees, according to a copy of the message obtained by the Times.
The newspaper reported that Nixon’s team has accused the New York TV station, which will host Wednesday’s debate, of meeting the governor’s demands in order to secure rights to the event.
Nixon’s camp is reportedly concerned about the temperature of the room, because Cuomo has a habit of making public appearances in cooler conditions.
Katz said she had not yet heard back from WCBS-TV, which declined to comment to the Times. Cuomo’s campaign, meanwhile, said it never weighed in on the room temperature.
“Unlike Cynthia Nixon, the Governor has more important things to focus on than the temperature of a room,” Cuomo campaign spokeswoman Lis Smith told The Hill.
A Siena College poll released late last month found Cuomo with a 60 to 29 percent edge over Nixon among likely Democratic voters. The incumbent has maintained a steady advantage in polls ahead of next month’s primary.
However, Cuomo has come under scrutiny in recent weeks after he said America “was never that great” during an event in which he was attempting to attack President TrumpDonald John TrumpGary Cohn says Trump trade adviser the only economist in world who believes in tariffs House transportation committee chairman threatens to subpoena Boeing, FAA communication Pentagon sets new limits on transgender service members MORE‘s slogan of “Make America Great Again.”
Cuomo has since walked back his comments, while Trump has seized on them to attack the New York governor.
“He should easily win his race against a Super Liberal Actress, but his political career is over!” Trump tweeted.