After Andrew Cuomo lost New York City’s mayoral primary to Democratic‑socialist Zohran Mamdani, another former governor who was hoping to revive his political career hit a similar wall.
In Jersey City, former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey, who had served as mayor‑elect until a runoff on Tuesday, was defeated by 41‑year‑old Councilman James Solomon. Both men are Democrats and finished first and second in the city’s nonpartisan August ballot, but no one reached a majority, forcing the top two to a November runoff. Solomon will take over the office from outgoing Mayor Steven Fulop, whose own bid for governor in 2025 ended in the Democratic primary defeat.
McGreevey, who was elected governor in 2001, left office in 2004 amid a scandal involving an extramarital affair with a male staffer, after which he publicly came out as gay. He has since worked as an executive director of a nonprofit helping people reintegrate after prison, addiction treatment, or military service, and he now describes himself as a “champion of second chances.”
Cuomo’s own attempt to return to the political arena—running as an independent in last month’s general election for New York City mayor—also ended in a loss to Mamdani. Both former governors found that their political comebacks did not materialize.
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