Cynthia Nixon slams Gov. Cuomo's preferred room temperature for their debate as 'notoriously sexist

STORY UPDATED, Aug. 29, 9:28 a.m. ET: The story was updated to include a statement provided to TheBlaze by Lis Smith. 

Actress Cynthia Nixon, who is challenging New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, said she would debate Cuomo "backward and in high heels," but she doesn't appreciate his alleged demands that include a "notoriously sexist" room temperature for the face-off.

"For the first time in 12 years, Gov. Cuomo agreed to a one-on-one primary debate — if we agreed to all of his requirements.

"I will debate him backward and in high heels if I have to," Nixon, a former "Sex in the City" star, tweeted Monday.

A Nixon campaign strategist reached out to WCBS-TV, the station hosting Wednesday night's debate at Hofstra University on Long Island, and requested a room temperature of 76 degrees, the New York Times reported.

But Cuomo's preference for a cold room is well known and Nixon isn't too happy about it.

What did Nixon's strategist say?

Nixon's strategist Rebecca Katz emailed WCBS last week asking for the warmer room temperature in the debate hall.

Katz wrote that 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,” according to a copy of her email obtained by the Times.

Nixon's team has also accused the governor's campaign of dictating the details of the entire debate, including his "press conference” style format, the Times reported.

“I was really looking forward to going toe to toe with Andrew Cuomo. I guess we’ll be seated,” Nixon told the paper. “I guess we’ll be going tush to tush.”

What did Cuomo's team say?

Cuomo's campaign told TheBlaze that it "never weighed in" on the room's temperature for the debate.

“Unlike Cynthia Nixon, the Governor has more important things to focus on than the temperature of a room," Lis Smith, the governor's spokeswoman, told TheBlaze in a statement.

Smith called Katz's comments "silly" in a statement to the Washington Times.

“The Nixon campaign thrives on paranoia and melodrama, and these silly accusations are more of the same,” Smith said in the statement. “They can debate about debates, but the governor is focused on having a substantive, in-depth discussion about the issues facing New York.”

When is the primary?

The primary election is Sept. 13. The election day was moved from Tuesday to Thursday this year.