Longshot NY Gubernatorial Primary Candidate Zephyr Teachout Gets First National Endorsement

The Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) officially endorsed outsider New York gubernatorial candidate Zephyr Teachout on Tuesday in her Democratic primary battle against incumbent Gov. Andrew Cuomo. PCCC is the first national fundraising organization to publicly back Teachout.

The group's co-founder Stephanie Taylor sent an email to her membership Tuesday that referenced a growing scandal over Gov. Cuomo's alleged interference with an anti-corruption commission. Taylor also characterized Cuomo as a "corporate Democrat serving big-money donors."

"New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, one of the worst corporate Democrats in America, is caught up in an ethics scandal -- and now, a cover-up," Taylor wrote.

The email memo referred to Zephyr Teachout as "one of the most wonderful progressive thinkers, organizers, and advocates in America."

Even with Cuomo's recent troubles, Teachout has a slim chance of unseating the governor. A new Marist Poll released Tuesday showed Cuomo's favorability rating has dropped five points in the wake of the anti-corruption commission flap. However, the poll still showed Cuomo with a 70% approval rating from the Democratic Party. The poll also showed only 23% of voters said the scandal would be a major factor in deciding their vote. It also concluded "primary challenger Zephyr Teachout is not known to most voters."