Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo was confronted by loud critics inside a Queens mosque at a campaign event Friday as he tried to make his case to Muslim voters.

The independent New York City mayoral candidate had been criticized by Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, who is Muslim, for not campaigning at mosques.

Cuomo blames heckling on Mamdani's campaign

Cuomo campaigned at a mosque for the first time last week. He made another stop at a mosque in Jamaica on Friday, but he wasn't exactly welcomed with open arms.

As he spoke, multiple people in the room began yelling, "Shame on you! Shame on you!"

But the former governor persisted despite the chaotic reception, speaking for about six minutes.

"This is a democracy, and we can have a difference of political opinion," he said as hecklers continued shouting.

Cuomo tried to differentiate between himself and Mamdani.

"I've always been a Democrat. Mr. Mamdani is a socialist. He is a socialist, and there's a big difference between being a Democrat and being a socialist," Cuomo said.

"You're not the Democrat nominee," one person shouted.

Cuomo was also heckled as he left the mosque. Afterward, he blamed Mamdani's campaign.

"Mamdani has this tactic of sending disrupters because he doesn't want people to hear the truth. He especially doesn't want Muslims to hear the truth," Cuomo said.

Mamdani says many Muslim New Yorkers are infuriated with Cuomo

Mamdani shot back at Cuomo during his own campaign event on Manhattan's West Side, saying his team did not orchestrate the mosque protest. 

"If it wasn't for the fact that he'd been beaten by a Muslim candidate by 13 points in a Democratic primary, he wouldn't be standing in a mosque," Mamdani said. 

He said many Muslim New Yorkers are infuriated with Cuomo being late to meet with the community.

"The answer is a record of engaging in Islamophobic rhetoric, a campaign where he sought to paint myself, as the first Muslim Democratic nominee in the history of this city, as someone to be feared, as someone to be understood more in the language of an animal than in the language of a person," Mamdani said.

Mamdani cited the case of a Texas man who was charged with making threats against him and his family.

"That is what pains me so much, it's not what it means for me, but what it means for Muslims at large," he said.

Earlier in the day in Union Square, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa insisted the everyone has to take down the temperature, but defended the right to speak out.

"I believe that the antidote to free speech is more free speech. We need to keep free speech alive. What we have to do is stop the violence," he said.

He said he's concerned threats will result in limited access between the public and candidates.

New York Democratic Party chief does not endorse Mamdani

Mamdani, who has been leading most recent polls, appeared Friday with Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins to emphasize his support and endorsements from the so-called "Big Three" — Cousins, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

He has not, however, been endorsed by State Democratic Party Chief Jay Jacobs.

Mayor Eric Adams, who is running for reelection as an independent, applauded Jacobs.

"I take my hat off to Jay. He stood up. He stood up for what our values are against those who do not support our values," Adams said.

Mamdani and Stewart-Cousins were asked about Jacobs not endorsing Mamdani and whether they thought Jacobs should resign. Mamdani called him "out of step with the future," but both said they leave a potential resignation up to the governor.

On Saturday, Brooklyn Congresswoman Yvette Clarke endorsed Mamdani at an event.

Cuomo spent the morning at the We Act 4 Change NAACP candidate breakfast in Manhattan before stopping at a Brooklyn synagogue and Bronx Islamic center. Sliwa and his supporters celebrated the opening of his Bronx campaign office on East Tremont Avenue. 

Where the candidates agree

There is one issue that all of the New York City mayoral candidates seem to agree on. That is the push to ban horse-drawn carriages citywide. 

Cuomo announced Friday he agrees with Adams' executive order cracking down on the carriage horse industry. The order strengthens oversight of the longstanding, but controversial, businesses. 

The mayor also asked the City Council to pass a law phasing out horse-drawn carriages and replacing them with electric alternatives. The proposal, Ryder's Law, is named after a horse that collapsed on the street and died in 2022. 

Mamdani and Sliwa have also supported the ban.