Andrew Yang ridiculed after saying Times Square was his favorite subway stop

Mayoral candidate mocked for favourite station and his wife spoke out against ‘racist’ cartoon

Andrew Yang, who is running to secure the Democratic nomination for New York mayor, has faced mockery over his favourite subway station.

During an appearance on Showtime’s Ziwe, he answered host Ziwe Fumudoh’s question of his favourite station with none other than Times Square.

When defending his choice, he said, “It’s big, it’s cavernous, there are entertainers there. Sure, what’s not to like?”

Yang lives in nearby Hell’s Kitchen, which was explored in a profile by the New York Times.

His answer sparked a lot of questions on Twitter by people aghast with his choice. Some made jokes about Olive Garden and others highlighted the similarities to The Office’s Michael Scott during his trips to the city.

He was also ridiculed online for saying that Encore was his favourite Jay-Z song, a collaboration he did with rock band Linkin Park.

However, a cartoon depicting Mr Yang as a tourist in the New York Daily News was labelled “racist” by Mr Yang’s wife Evelyn. Mr Yang has lived in the city for 25 years.

The coronavirus pandemic has led to an increase in hate crimes against people of Asian heritage across the world, according to reporting by Human Rights Watch. Former president Donald Trump exacerbated these tensions by using racist terms like “Wuhan Flu” and “the Chinese virus” to describe Covid-19. One of the most deadly attacks was a mass shooting in Atlanta – six of the eight killed were women of Asian background.

Mr Yang unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic nomination in the 2020 presidential election. However, according to a New York Daily News report, he is the most likely to win the mayoral nomination thanks to his high name recognition. In Democratic-heavy New York City, the winner of the mayoral primary is almost certain to become the city’s next leader.