Zohran Mamdani and second place rival Andrew Cuomo traded familiar attacks and counterattacks in the first general election debate for New York City mayor Thursday — with Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa attacking both men over liberal policies he vowed to end as mayor.

After losing to Mamdani in the primary, Cuomo is running as an independent who has been pitching moderate Democrats as well as Republicans. But he’s failed to climb out of a double-digit polling deficit and continued to struggle Thursday night to define himself as anything other than the anti-Mamdani candidate.

While Mamdani and Cuomo have taken up much of the oxygen in the race so far, Thursday was Sliwa’s chance to pitch himself as an alternative to the two Democrats.

“Thank God I'm not a professional politician,” said

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