alternatehistory.com

In 1977, Democratic heavyweights Ed Koch and Mario Cuomo fought a bitter, bruising contest for the Democratic nomination in the election to determine New York's next Mayor. Koch's supporters attacked Cuomo's principled opposition to the death penalty, while Cuomo supporters smeared Koch for rumors that he was gay. The primary results were extremely narrow: Koch beat Cuomo by only 1.07%. A runoff primary was held, but Koch had the momentum to win and he defeated Cuomo once again before trouncing him in the general election where Cuomo ran as the Liberal candidate. Both men went on to become key players in the 1980's Democratic Party, but what if Cuomo had beaten Koch in 1977? Besides those two, five other candidates competed for the nomination. Had anyone of them realized their cause was hopeless and endorsed Cuomo, he would have won. What would be the future of NYC from then on, and what butterflies would this cause for America as a whole? If he succeeds in leading New York out of the terrible 1970's and is still elected Governor in 1982, would Cuomo have the self-confidence to run for President that he lacked in OTL?
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