Native New Yorker and Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon has announced her candidacy for Governor of the the Empire State, in a direct challenge to incumbent Andrew Cuomo.
Nixon announced her debut in the world of politics with a two-minute video on her social media platforms, where she declared: ‘I love New York and today I’m announcing my candidacy for governor.’
She also began to lay out what her platform will be as she prepares to face ogg against the sitting governor.
‘We want our government to work again. On health care, ending massive incarceration, fixing our broken subway,’ said Nixon.
‘We are sick of politicians who care more about headlines and power than they do about us.’
School run: The spot shows Nixon walking her son Max (above) to school, with public education set to become a key part of her campaign
Family unit: In another scene, Nixon prepares dinner while her wife Christine and older son Max look on in the kitchen
Below ground: Nixon is later seen getting on the subway, which she is vowing to repair if elected
Earlier this month, NY 1 broke the news that Nixon would challenge Governor Cuomo in the Democratic primary later this year.
It was also revealed that two key members behind Bill de Blasio’s successful run for mayor of New York City back in 2014 will play crucial roles in Nixon’s campaign.
This news is not all that shocking in the wake of a piece that Nixon posted on CNN back in January ahead of President Trump’s first State of the Union address.
She has also been a very dedicated anbd loyal surrogate for a number of politicians, particularly Mayor de Blasio and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
In that CNN piece, Nixon wrote that just voting is not enough any more, and that a more involved role in government among those underrepresented communities was the only way to ‘take back our government.’
‘Given the current state of the union, taking our country back is going to require all of us everyday people to step up and take action – whether by protesting anti-immigrant policies, organizing for women’s rights, refusing to give polluters our business, demonstrating against police violence, or even taking the leap to run for office ourselves,’ stated Nixon.
‘Everyday people running means more people of color, more women, more queer people, more first-generation Americans, more allies — more of the people whose voices have been missing for far too long.’
She then added: ‘We may not have million dollar super PACs behind us, but we’ll have something more important – a shared mission uniting millions of people across this nation.’
Nixon also hinted at the idea of a run back in August during an interview on Today.
‘I think there are a lot of people who would like me to run,’ said Nixon.
‘I think for a variety of reasons but the one number is education.’
Mixed returns: Nixon, 51, is said to be working with two key members of the team that helped Mayor Bill de Blasio win office back in 2014 (a smiling Nixon with the equally cheerful Clintons and less-than-thrilled Cuomo at Mayor Bill de Blasio’s 2014 inauguration)
New York City girls: She also spoke about a possible run last August, with many championing her thanks to her work on behalf of underfunded public schools in New York (Nixon with Davis and Parker in 2004 after winning her first Emmy)
Life: In 2006 she was diagnosed with breast cancer, in 2011 she welcomed her third child and in 2012 she married her longtime partner Christine Marinoni (couple above in 2015)
The state of New York currently ranks close to last when it comes to equitable funding among public schools, which is something that Nixon has worked to change for years.
‘Governor Cuomo likes to say that we spend more per pupil than any other state, and that is actually true. But the only reason that is true is because we spend so much on the kids in our wealthiest districts,’ Nixon explained on that Today appearance.
‘Between our hundred richest schools and our hundred poorest schools there’s a $10,000 gap on what we spend per pupil.’
Host Al Roker tried to get her to admit she might be eyeing a run during that segment, but Nixon refused to comment, saying:” ‘I cannot.’
Nixon has been working as an actress her entire life, but shot to international fame thanks to her role as Miranda Hobbes on Sex and the City.
Of the four actresses who starred on the program, it is Nixon who has enjoyed the most critical success ever since the program went off the air.
She picked up an Emmy for the show’s final season and another four years later for her guest turn on the popular NBC series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Nixon has also won a Best Actress Tony for her work in Rabbit Hole in 2007 and a second in the Best Supporting Actress category just last year for The Little Foxes.
And in 2009 Nixon even scored a Grammy in the Best Spoken Word Album category along with Beau Bridges and her former Sex and the City paramour Blair Underwood for their reading of on An Inconvenient Truth.
That puts her just one award away from becoming an EGOT, which is the quadruple crown of the entertainment industry.