Kagada picture stirs debate in New York mayoral race

A seemingly innocuous photograph, posted two months ago by Uganda Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga has resurfaced online detonating a political firestorm across the Atlantic in the US.

The image, which features Kadaga posing alongside Democratic frontrunner for New York mayor, Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, became the centrepiece of a scathing political attack between two main candidates in the race.

Kadaga shared the photo on July 31st with the caption, "Delighted to meet with Zohran Mamdhani incoming Mayor of New York City. Good luck in the next phase of elections.” 

This week, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, latched on the image, to accuse his contender Mamdani of refusing to cut ties with Uganda (his country of birth) on grounds of its human rights record.

Cuomo singled out Kadaga's controversial political history, which includes a years-long campaign to enforce laws to imprison gay people for life and previous calls for the death penalty for certain LGBTQ+ offenses. 

The simple act of posing for the picture, which appeared to link the mayoral candidate with the Ugandan official, instantly provided political ammunition in a fiercely contested election.

Cuomo's Scathing Attack on Dual Citizenship

Launching a ferocious attack at a Monday afternoon news conference, independent candidate Andrew Cuomo labelled Mamdani "mansion boy" and "champagne socialist" to discredit the frontrunner. 

Cuomo’s critique focused not just on the photo, but on Mamdani’s continuing ties to Uganda, the country of his birth, where he maintains dual citizenship.

“Why would you keep a citizenship in Uganda, which is a country that outlaws the LGBTQ community?” Cuomo demanded. 

He argued it was an act of "total hypocrisy" for Mamdani to hold citizenship in a country with such severe anti-gay legislation while seeking to lead one of the world's most diverse cities. 

Cuomo demanded that Mamdani publicly renounce his Ugandan citizenship, stating: "Why wouldn't you say I am going to give up my citizenship because I will not be the citizen of a country that would kill gay people?"

Campaigns Go for the Jugular

Mamdani’s campaign responded swiftly, though it conspicuously avoided addressing Kadaga's history directly. 

Instead, Mamdani's press secretary, Dora Pekec, went directly for Cuomo’s past, aiming to dismantle his credibility as an LGBTQ+ ally. 

Pekec stated that Cuomo was using the citizenship issue because he had "nothing real to offer New Yorkers," before attacking the former governor’s own record. 

“This is the same Cuomo who ran the ‘Vote for Cuomo, not the homo’ campaign and refused to stand with the LGBTQ community when it counted - he doesn’t get to posture as an ally now,” the statement read.

Meanwhile, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa defended Mamdani’s integrity, saying, “Nobody would accuse Zohran Mamdani of being homophobic or anti-gay or lesbian or transgender.” 

However, Sliwa still deemed the photo "a bad look" and questioned Mamdani’s property ties to the African nation. 

The Guardian Angels founder then called for the rhetoric from all candidates to be toned down, revealing that credible threats against him and his wife had necessitated the need for private security at his news conference.