Cynthia Nixon is taking no chances in her upcoming debate with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. One of her senior staffers even went so far as to ensure the temperature inside the debate hall at Hofstra University is not “sexist,” according to a New York Times report.
In an email to debate host WCBS-TV, Rebecca Katz, a top adviser to the campaign demanded that conditions inside the room be kept at exactly 76 degrees, The Times reported.
Working conditions are “notoriously sexist when it comes to room temperature, so we just want to make sure we’re all on the same page here,” read a copy of the email, according to The Times.
A rep for Nixon’s campaign did not immediately respond to request for comment from TheWrap.
The debate between Cuomo and Nixon on Wednesday will be their first (and perhaps only) face-to-face meeting before Democratic voters head to the polls to choose between them in the primary on Sept. 13.
Since announcing her insurgent campaign in March, the “Sex & The City” alum has remained a pointed thorn in Cuomo’s side. Though he is up double digits in polling from July, there have been worrying signs that it won’t be as easy a road as he had hoped.
Cuomo remains deeply unpopular with Nixon’s liberal base, whose high turnout helped topple Rep. Joe Crowley in his Queen primary against upstart candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The Nation, the city’s iconic liberal magazine, came out for Nixon in June.
In a 2014 primary challenge against Cuomo, Zephyr Teachout, a virtually unknown candidate, secured 34 percent of the vote.