Former Governor Mario M. Cuomo speaks at a rally in 1991. (Provided Photo)
The Office of Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that former Governor Mario M. Cuomo passed away from natural causes due to heart failure this evening, Jan. 1, at home with his loving family at his side. He was 82 years of age. This news arrives just hours after his son, New York’s Governor Andrew Cuomo delivered his inaugural address.
The 52nd Governor of New York State, Governor Mario Cuomo served as New York’s Chief Executive from 1983 through 1994. He was credited with simultaneously improving the business environment of New York and the quality of life for its citizens, despite a national recession at the time.
Governor Cuomo presented 11 consecutive balanced budgets, reduced taxes, and implemented comprehensive governmental ethics and fiscal reforms. From the time Cuomo took office, New York experienced an increase of hundreds of thousands of jobs and tens of thousands of businesses.
Proclaiming the Decade of the Child, Mario Cuomo ushered in a multi-faceted effort to improve the lives of all New York’s children. His administration became the first in the country to develop an Energy Plan and to sign into law controls on acid rain, among many undertakings.
Prior to his election as governor in 1983, Governor Cuomo served in the public and private practice of law for 18 years, simultaneously teaching as an adjunct professor for more than ten years at St. John’s School of Law.
Mario Cuomo first gained public recognition for his resolution of the Forest Hills housing controversy in 1972. He was appointed to serve as the Secretary of State of New York in 1975, and in 1978 he was elected as Lieutenant Governor. He later received national attention for his 1984 Keynote Address at the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco.
The year 2014 marked 60 years of marriage to first lady Matilda Raffa Cuomo, a graduate of The St. John’s University Teacher’s College.
The Governor is survived by his children, Margaret (Howard Maier), Andrew (Sandra Lee), Maria (Kenneth Cole), Madeline (Brian O’Donoghue), Christopher (Cristina Cuomo), as well as 14 grandchildren: Christina Cuomo Perpignano, Marianna Cuomo Maier, Cara Kennedy Cuomo, Mariah Kennedy Cuomo, Michaela Kennedy Cuomo, Emily Cole, Amanda Cole, Katherine Cole, Samantha O’Donoghue, Kristin O’Donoghue, Tess O’Donoghue, Bella Cuomo, Mario Cuomo, and Carolina Regina Cuomo.
Our thoughts are with Governor Andrew Cuomo’s family during these difficult times. Check back for funeral arrangements.
