Andrew Cuomo’s campaign to reclaim political power as mayor of New York City is facing a major hurdle. The disgraced former governor is reportedly under criminal investigation by the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, following allegations that he lied to Congress about his administration’s handling of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.

The probe, confirmed by the New York Times and cited by sources familiar with the matter, reportedly began last month and centers on Cuomo’s testimony during a congressional inquiry into pandemic-era decisions. Cuomo had been widely criticized for a 2020 directive that forced nursing homes to accept COVID-positive patients—an order many believe contributed to thousands of preventable deaths among the elderly.

Republican members of Congress have been calling for a Justice Department investigation into Cuomo for months, accusing him of misleading federal lawmakers and manipulating death data to protect his political image.

Cuomo, who resigned in 2021 under a cloud of sexual harassment allegations and scandal, has been attempting a political revival. Despite his tainted record, polling shows him as the current frontrunner in the Democrat primary to unseat current NYC Mayor Eric Adams.

Ironically, Mayor Adams—who recently left the Democratic Party to register as an independent—had just cleared his own legal cloud last month after corruption charges against him were dropped. Adams has since pledged to work closely with President Trump’s administration on restoring law and order, including assisting with the crackdown on illegal immigration.

Now, it’s Cuomo under federal scrutiny—and his campaign is scrambling to regain control of the narrative.

Cuomo’s spokesperson Rich Azzopardi denied any contact with investigators and framed the report as politically motivated. “This is lawfare and election interference plain and simple,” Azzopardi told CBS News. “Something President Trump and his top Department of Justice officials say they are against.”

But critics argue Cuomo’s pattern of evasion and media manipulation has finally caught up with him. During the height of the pandemic, the former governor was celebrated in the press—winning an Emmy and a lucrative book deal for his COVID briefings—while quietly covering up the real toll of his decisions in New York’s care facilities.

By 2021, the scandal had become too large to ignore. Cuomo’s own attorney general released a report showing the state had undercounted nursing home deaths by as much as 50%. That, combined with mounting sexual misconduct allegations, forced him to resign in disgrace.

Now, with more than $2.5 million raised and a powerful super PAC behind him, Cuomo is hoping voters will forget. But the federal probe could change everything. If prosecutors find that Cuomo lied under oath, he could face perjury or obstruction charges—serious offenses that would cripple his campaign and possibly end his political career for good.

Cuomo’s defenders insist the timing of the leak is suspicious, coming just as he gains momentum in the race. But to many New Yorkers, the real concern is that a man who presided over so much tragedy and controversy is once again asking for their trust.

With the Trump administration’s Justice Department vowing to restore accountability at every level, Cuomo may be facing the one thing he’s spent his entire career avoiding: real consequences.