Cuomo released a 17 plus-minute video declaring his candidacy Saturday on his website, newly rebranded as Cuomo for Mayor.

“We have had times when we are at our shining best, and there are times when we struggle and endure great hardship. But we also know we can handle a crisis because we have,” he said. “We recently did it together through COVID,” in a pointed reference to his leadership of the state during the peak of the pandemic.

Cuomo went on to describe a city in turmoil, calling out the experience of seeing mentally ill homeless people, passing empty storefronts and encountering graffiti, the influx of migrants and random violence.

“The city just feels threatening, out of control and in crisis,” he said.

Although Cuomo enters the race with considerable advantages, the former governor will have to overcome major stains on his reputation as he campaigns.

In addition to the sexual harassment finding that led to his resignation, he was accused of covering up the number of COVID-19 deaths involving nursing home deaths residents. And New York’s highest court recently validated a state ethics board that determined that Cuomo improperly used government staffers to help write a book about his response to the pandemic for which we received a $5.1 million advance.

In his video introduction, Cuomo acknowledged that he didn’t “do everything right in my years of government service” and “made mistakes, some painfully.” But he pledged that he had learned from his errors, knows what needs to get done and “will get it done.”