--- ---  # 'Can You Stop Lying?' Cynthia Nixon and Gov. Andrew Cuomo Square Off in Heated Debate by [Alix Langone](https://time.com/author/alix-langone/) ## Alix Langone Aug 30, 2018 12:06 AM UTC  New York Governor Andrew Cuomo answers a question as Democratic New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon looks on during a gubernatorial debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, on August 29, 2018. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo answers a question as Democratic New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon looks on during a gubernatorial debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, on August 29, 2018.Craig Ruttle - AFP/Getty Images by [Alix Langone](https://time.com/author/alix-langone/) ## Alix Langone Aug 30, 2018 12:06 AM UTC Gov. Andrew Cuomo faced off against his opponent [Cynthia Nixon](http://time.com/5272327/cynthia-nixon-new-york-governor-candidate-race/) Wednesday during the only televised debate before the New York gubernatorial primary election in September. The debate was lively as Nixon and [Cuomo](http://time.com/5368520/andrew-cuomo-america-great/) threw jabs at each other, though both remained civil throughout the course of the evening. The crowd was animated and responsive as the opponents interrupted each other during particularly passionate moments of the debate. As Cuomo tried to answer a moderator’s question early on in debate, Nixon interjected and tried to speak over the incumbent governor before he shot back at her. > [](https://twitter.com/ryansongalia/status/1034946436931244032) “Can you stop interrupting?” Cuomo asked. “Can you stop lying?” Nixon replied. “As soon as you do,” Cuomo said back, before moving forward to finish answering the question. > [](https://twitter.com/ShaneGoldmacher/status/1034912573697806337) Nixon, a former actress and [political newcomer](http://time.com/5206095/cynthia-nixon-politics/), is running on a more progressive platform than Cuomo and has been vocally critical of his record on issues like corruption in the state’s capital and his management of New York City’s public transit system. The question of whether Cuomo would remain governor throughout the entire term also came up at Wednesday night’s debate. Cuomo, who some think could run for president in 2020, said he would not seek out the Oval Office if he was re-elected. “The only caveat is if God strikes me down,” Cuomo said. Nixon and Cuomo Get Heated in NY Gubernatorial Debate ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5382303/nixon-cuomo-ny-governor-debate/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5382303/nixon-cuomo-ny-governor-debate/"},"headline":"'Can You Stop Lying?' Cynthia Nixon and Gov. Andrew Cuomo Square Off in Heated Debate","datePublished":"2018-08-30T00:06:56.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T21:17:41.499Z","description":"This is their first and only debate before the September primary","url":"https://time.com/5382303/nixon-cuomo-ny-governor-debate/","keywords":["onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt345185cd79f573bc/6989390cab6d77851e6b38bd/cnythina-nixon-andrew-cuomo-governor-new-york-debate.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alix Langone","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alix-langone/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt345185cd79f573bc/6989390cab6d77851e6b38bd/cnythina-nixon-andrew-cuomo-governor-new-york-debate.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-VOTE-DEBATE-GOVERNOR-NEWYORK","caption":"US-VOTE-DEBATE-GOVERNOR-NEWYORK","creditText":"Craig Ruttle - AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5382303/nixon-cuomo-ny-governor-debate/","name":"'Can You Stop Lying?' Cynthia Nixon and Gov. Andrew Cuomo Square Off in Heated Debate"}}]}] ```