Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is poised to jump into the New York City mayoral race as soon as next month, threatening to roil an already unprecedented election that finds embattled Mayor Eric Adams (D) running for his political life. Cuomo, who left office amid multiple controversies, has not confirmed he’s running for mayor. But the former governor has reportedly laid the groundwork for a bid as anticipation grows for him to make an announcement. At least one early poll has shown him leading the pack of Democratic candidates — including Adams. Though there are still months to go before the June primary, Empire State Democrats are already bracing for one of the most tumultuous mayoral races the city has seen in years. “Andrew Cuomo is obviously the 900-pound gorilla in this room,” said Democratic strategist Trip Yang. “He would start with a commanding lead built mostly on his high name recognition because he has served in statewide office here for over a decade.” Cuomo’s stock was on the upswing five years ago within the Democratic Party and the country at large. The scion of a political family, Cuomo had served as governor of New York for almost a decade before he became a regular fixture on television screens amid the COVID-19 pandemic.  But his political career came crashing down as multiple scandals surrounded his administration. Multiple women accused him of sexual harassment, and his administration was accused of intentionally undercounting the number of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.  Cuomo rejected the findings of an independent investigation from state Attorney General Letitia James (D), but he resigned from office in August 2021, saying he didn’t want to distract from the government’s operations.  But he stayed politically active, launching a political action committee and a project to advocate for gun control in 2022. And it appears that he’s about to seek office again with an up-for-grabs mayoral race.  Politico reported last week that Cuomo is set to hire Charlie King, a longstanding ally, as a consultant and may enter the race in early February. Cuomo hasn’t publicly acknowledged interest in running, but a spokesperson told the outlet that Cuomo “is deeply concerned about [the city's] direction, and will always help any way he can.” The Hill has reached out to Cuomo’s spokesperson for further comment.  Democrats said Cuomo is likely to be a quick favorite if he enters the race thanks to voters’ familiarity with him and his vision for the city, though his vulnerabilities give others an opening.  One poll released Monday showed Cuomo with a large lead over his potential competitors, claiming 32 percent in the first round of a hypothetical ranked-choice primary the city has used since 2021. Former Comptroller Scott Stringer came in second with 10 percent, followed by current Comptroller Brad Lander with 8 percent.  Democratic strategist Hank Sheinkopf acknowledged Cuomo is being powered by name recognition but also by coming off as more moderate in a time of “chaos” in the city with the scandals surrounding Adams.  “Generally, when there is chaos or disorder, people tend to vote for the party out of power,” he said. “The ‘Cuomo Party’ is out of power.”  Adams was already gearing for a battle for his reelection bid with his approval rating dropping and challenges facing the city like housing affordability and an influx of migrants, but his support plummeted after he was indicted on charges of accepting bribes from businessmen and a Turkish government official for alleged favors. He has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing.  A survey showed an overwhelming majority of New Yorkers wanted him to resign, and Adams only received 6 percent in the first round of the poll released this week. That presents an opening for Cuomo, along with the half-dozen candidates who have entered the race.  “Eric Adams is in really dire shape right now. The storyline is going to be Cuomo vs. the field,” Yang said. “Can there be a candidate who emerges against Andrew Cuomo?”  But despite his name recognition, Cuomo still has vulnerabilities that could make him lose front-runner status.  The poll showed Cuomo is viewed favorably by 48 percent of respondents but unfavorably by 44 percent, much higher than anyone else in the poll, except Adams.  “It suggests that while he starts with a large lead, there is a limited ceiling, and what you often want to do is look at candidates that have a better favorable-to-unfavorable ratio with registered Democratic voters, because those candidates have potential to grow and potential to catch up to someone like Cuomo,” Yang said.  He pointed to the 2013 mayor’s race, in which controversial former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) was an early leader in some polls only for him to slip and lose to Bill de Blasio.  Patrick Egan, a professor of politics and public policy at New York University, said one indicator of Cuomo’s potential may be how he polls with female voters given the sexual harassment allegations against him.  “Of course, he's denied [the allegations], but that was the galvanizing thing that led him to have to leave, and certainly, any opponent of his is going to try to highlight those issues,” he said.  But he added Cuomo could benefit from the city facing high-profile crises that left-leaning politicians tend to take blame for. “[Cuomo will] probably try to run toward the center, particularly on issues like homelessness and crime and law and order. It'll be interesting to see if he's able to do that, because obviously that's the space, the lane that Eric Adams ran on four years ago.”  Sheinkopf said the other candidates will need to find a development to one-up the well-known Adams and Cuomo.  “How do they overcome that? It won’t be money,” he said. “It’s got to be something else that happens.”