Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is making a bold play for New York City’s Muslim vote — promising to open the city’s first Arabic language charter school if elected mayor.

The independent candidate, trailing Democratic front-runner Zohran Mamdani by double digits in recent polls, made the pledge during a visit to the Ansarudeen Islamic Center in The Bronx, led by Sheikh Ibrahim Niass, one of the city’s most influential Muslim leaders.

“His willingness to support our efforts for an Arabic charter school is welcomed news,” Sheikh Niass told The New York Post.

Cuomo’s commitment — confirmed by his campaign — contrasts with Mamdani, a democratic socialist who has opposed lifting the city’s cap on charter schools. The move signals a calculated outreach to Muslim and immigrant families who have long complained that New York’s education system fails to accommodate their linguistic and cultural needs.

At the Bronx appearance, Cuomo told congregants that Arabic instruction was a matter of equity, not religion. “I know parents who send their kids to Egypt to learn Arabic,” he said. “We wouldn’t have to absorb these costs if we had an Arabic charter school. It wouldn’t preach Islam — it would teach language and culture, like the Hebrew Language Academy or Hellenic Charter School.”

Cuomo, who as governor expanded the state’s charter school laws, said underperforming schools should be replaced by specialized alternatives. “When a school has been failing for a prolonged period, shut it down and give a charter or specialized school a chance to succeed,” he said. “Keeping schools open just to protect the bureaucracy — that’s unacceptable.”

Currently, the city’s 286 charter schools serve more than 150,000 students, roughly 15% of all public schoolchildren. They are publicly funded but privately managed, often outperforming traditional schools on state exams, especially in the South Bronx and other disadvantaged communities.

The Mamdani campaign declined to comment on Cuomo’s proposal. But Mamdani, who could become New York’s first Muslim mayor, has sought to consolidate support among the city’s South Asian and Arab communities. He has accused Cuomo of “stoking Islamophobia” — a charge Niass flatly rejected.

“Cuomo defended my religion,” Niass said, recalling Cuomo’s public support for the controversial mosque near Ground Zero after 9/11, when he was attorney general. “He respects every religion. I don’t believe he’s Islamophobic. That’s a lie.”

Cuomo’s charter school stance has long angered teachers’ unions, who argue that charters divert resources from public schools. The United Federation of Teachers endorsed Mamdani after his decisive primary win, warning against further expansion of charters.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)