The Contender: Andrew Cuomo, a Biography

Michael Shnayerson

Mar 2015 · Hachette Audio · Narrated by Robert Petkoff

About this audiobook

A no-holds-barred biography of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Andrew Cuomo is the protagonist of an ongoing political saga that reads like a novel. In many ways, his rise, fall, and rise again is an iconic story: a young American politician of vaunting ambition, aiming for nothing less than the presidency. Building on his father's political success, a first run for governor in 2002 led to a stinging defeat, and a painful, public divorce from Kerry Kennedy, scion of another political dynasty, Cuomo had to come back from seeming political death and reinvent himself.

He did so, brilliantly, by becoming New York's attorney general, and compiling a record that focused on public corruption. In winning the governorship in 2010, he promised to clean up America's most corrupt legislature. He is blunt and combative, the antithesis of the glad-handing, blow-dried senator or governor who tries to please one and all. He's also proven he can make his legislature work, alternately charming and arm-twisting his colleagues with a talent for political strategy reminiscent of President Lyndon Johnson. Political pundits tend to agree that for Cuomo, a run for the White House is not a question of whether, but when.

Ratings and reviews

I truly hope the author built up this snake because he received an amazing paycheck. This man is nothing more than garbage, or pond scum. A liar, and a pawn in the chess game to destroy America from the inside.

Gov. Cuomo was such a breath of fresh air to watch as a true leader while he was in the throws of the COVID19 crisis. He proved himself to be a true leader who was able to fully able to communicate the science and data to his masses. Unlike our national leader, he was able to bring a seemingly impossible situation under control through mutual trust and consideration. I would be very proud to see this man become president of this nation. We need some intelligence, responsibility, and truth at the federal level.

Brilliant just like the man.

About the author

Michael Shnayerson is a long-time contributing editor to Vanity Fair and the author of eight books on a range of non-fiction subjects, from biographies of entertainer Harry Belafonte (My Song) and New York governor Andrew Cuomo (The Contender) to narrative-driven accounts of drug-resistant bacteria (The Killer Within) and mountaintop coal removal (Coal River). Shnayerson is married to Gayfryd Steinberg, and lives in Sag Harbor and Manhattan.