Cynthia Nixon still plans to run for Governor after losing Democratic endorsement
Cynthia Nixon. Drew Angerer/Getty
Cynthia Nixon has vowed to continue her campaign for the Governor of New York after losing the endorsement of the Democratic party.
In March, the former Sex and the City star and long-time LGBT activist announced a bid to become Governor of New York, as a Democratic primary challenger to the incumbent Governor Andrew Cuomo.
However, on Wednesday, Nixon lost the endorsement of the Democratic Party after only gaining 5% at the party’s state convention.
(Roy Rochlin/Getty Images)
In New York state, candidates for Governor need 25% of the vote at the state’s Democratic Convention in order to formally receive the endorsement.
Incumbent Governor Andrew Cuomo received 95% of the votes.
However, Nixon remained dedicated to the election and stated that she went to the convention as an “actual Democrat.”
She said: “I am attending the convention today because New York Democrats deserve to have at least one actual Democrat running for governor at their state convention.
“We are here to show we are not afraid, and this is our party too, and that voters have an alternative.”
(TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images)
Nixon’s campaign added that they completely expected not to win the nomination, and instead will collect the 15,000 signatures required to be on the primary ballot.
“Most people running for office will have to collect signatures to be on the ballot. It’s not seen as any significant hurdle,” Lauren Hitt, a spokesperson for the Nixon campaign, told HuffPost.
Nixon has not formally lost the nomination of her party, as some have claimed.
Governor Cuomo (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for UNICEF)
The Democratic primary, the vote to formally nominate which candidate will run on the behalf of the party, will not be held until September.
Several prominent figures have endorsed Cuomo, including Hilary Clinton as she spoke at the convention on Wednesday, and singer and HIV campaigner Elton John.
In March, Nixon was branded as an “unqualified lesbian” by the former Speaker of the New York City Council Christine Quinn.
Christine Quinn (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Quinn, who is herself gay, complained of Nixon: “She wants to be an unqualified lesbian to be the Governor of New York.”
But Nixon took the insult in her stride by giving out badges on her website bearing the phrase.
The “Unqualified Lesbian buttons” are available in two colours, blue and white, for donors who give $5 or more to the Cynthia Nixon for New York campaign.
Her campaign added: “Cynthia was called an ‘unqualified lesbian’. In her defence, there’s a lot of paperwork required. Grab your button to support our campaign today.”
