In an exclusive interview with NY1′s Josh Robin today, former Gov. Mario Cuomo insisted his son, AG Andrew Cuomo, will have to fight his way into the office his father once held.

The ex-governor, once a national liberal icon who was considered a potential presidential contender, was denied a fourth term 1994 by then-GOP Sen. George Pataki.

Today, he warned against Democrats being too complacent, in spite of Andrew Cuomo’s double-digit leads i the polls.

“No, no, no, no, no. Nobody cruises. nobody cruises,” Mario Cuomo said. “Ed Koch was gonna cruise, and I was 38 points behind. Hugh Carey couldn’t possibly win in 75 against Howard Samuels. Nobody cruises.”

“The biggest factor in politics is probably the biggest factor in life, and that is coincidence – you’re in the right place at the right time. You didn’t plan to be there, you didn’t set it all up. And that’s what happens in politics.”

Mario Cuomo, who doesn’t often grant extended interviews, seemed a bit at odds with his son’s contention that unnamed “activists” will seek to divide the state, saying the national and local landscapes are different.

Catch the full interview on “Inside City Hall” at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. “Capital Tonight” will be airing some excerpts, too, at 8 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.

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