Former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, an openly gay supporter of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, called Cynthia Nixon an “unqualified lesbian” a day after the actress announced she’s going to challenge the governor in a primary. 
 
 In an interview with The Post, Quinn also denounced Nixon for endorsing Bill de Blasio over her in the 2013 Democratic primary for mayor. 
 
 “I’m surprised by this race. It’s a flight of fancy on her part,” Quinn said of Nixon’s announcement Monday that she would take on Cuomo in September’s Democratic primary. 
 
 “Cynthia Nixon was opposed to having a qualified lesbian become mayor of New York City. Now she wants an unqualified lesbian to be the governor of New York. You have to be qualified and have experience. She isn’t qualified to be the governor,” Quinn said. 
 
 Quinn conceded that she and the “Sex and the City” actress both support progressive positions — but added that it takes more than being a reliably leftist celebrity to run the Empire State. 
 
 “She’s an accomplished actress, a supporter of political causes and that’s a good thing. Participating in rallies is important,” Quinn said. 
 
 “But she’s never run an organization. Being an actress and celebrity doesn’t make you qualified for public office. This is a time to move away from celebrity and toward progressive leadership.” 
 
 The former speaker heaped praise on Cuomo, and scoffed at the idea that he should tilt further to the left. 
 
 “Gov. Cuomo’s accomplished [a lot] including a $15 minimum wage, opposing fracking and she’s on record supporting the governor on marriage equality,” Quinn gushed. 
 
 “Why are we having this primary? Democrats should be united and focusing on winning control of the state Senate and taking back the House of Representatives.” 
 
 Nixon brushed off Quinn’s barbs. 
 
 “Her being a lesbian and my being a lesbian” is not the issue, she said. 
 
 The race, she added, is about “the corruption in Albany. It’s time for an outsider. I’m not an Albany insider.” 
 
 She said Cuomo had gotten nearly all of his $30 million in donations from corporate and special interests and virtually none from small donors and grassroots supporters. 
 
 Related Video 2:06 Cynthia Nixon for Governor ||||| / Updated By Brooke Sopelsa 
 
 Former New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who made an unsuccessful bid for mayor in 2013, slammed Cynthia Nixon a day after the “Sex and the City” actress announced her candidacy for New York governor. 
 
 “Cynthia Nixon was opposed to having a qualified lesbian become mayor of New York City. Now she wants to be an unqualified lesbian to be the governor of New York,” Quinn said Tuesday in an interview with the New York Post. “Being an actress and celebrity doesn’t make you qualified for public office.” 
 
 Cynthia Nixon and Christine Quinn Gregor Fischer, Brad Barket / EPA/Getty Images 
 
 Nixon, who is married to a woman and has publicly identified as bisexual, endorsed one of Quinn’s mayoral opponents, Bill DeBlasio, in the 2013 Democratic primary for mayor of New York City. Quinn, an out lesbian, is currently supporting incumbent Andrew Cuomo, who will face off against Nixon in the Democratic primary. 
 
 Nixon, according to the New York Post, brushed off Quinn’s remarks, saying, “Her being a lesbian and my being a lesbian” is not the issue. The race, Nixon told the paper, is about “corruption in Albany,” the state’s capital. 
 
 In a series of social media posts Tuesday afternoon, Quinn sought to clarify the comments she made in her Post interview. 
 
 "To be clear, Cynthia Nixon’s identity has no bearing on her candidacy and it was not my intention to suggest it did. I want to be clear about that. I would never, EVER, criticize someone because of their identity," Quinn tweeted. "The real point I am trying to make is that qualifications matter and records matter. I do not believe she has the qualifications or the record." 
 
 Nixon, a liberal activist and actress, announced her bid for governor on Monday in a video she posted on social media. 
 
 “I love New York. I’ve never lived anywhere else. But something has to change,” Nixon said in the announcement video. “We are sick of politicians who care more about headlines and power than they do about us. It can't just be business as usual anymore." 
 
 In the video, Nixon called out the state’s income inequality, New York City’s “broken subway” system and the need to end “mass incarceration." 
 
 Nixon is considered the underdog in the Sept. 13 primary, with 66 percent of registered Democrats supporting Cuomo, compared with 19 percent for Nixon, according to a Siena College poll released on Monday. But Nixon has room to grow, with around six-in-10 Democrats remaining undecided about her. 
 
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– Former New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn—who considers herself a "qualified lesbian"—isn't happy about Cynthia Nixon's Democratic primary challenge to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The former Sex and the City star supported rival Bill de Blasio when Quinn ran for mayor in 2013. Nixon "was opposed to having a qualified lesbian become mayor of New York City. Now she wants an unqualified lesbian to be the governor of New York," Quinn told the New York Post in an interview Tuesday. "You have to be qualified and have experience. She isn't qualified to be the governor,” Quinn said, calling Nixon's run a "flight of fancy." Quinn praised Nixon's support for progressive causes, but added: "Being an actress and celebrity doesn’t make you qualified for public office. This is a time to move away from celebrity and toward progressive leadership." In response, Nixon said it was time for an outsider to deal with corruption in Albany. "Her being a lesbian and my being a lesbian" is not the issue, she said. In social media posts after the Post interview ignited controversy, Quinn stressed that she was criticizing Nixon's qualifications, not her identity, NBC reports. "To be clear, Cynthia Nixon's identity has no bearing on her candidacy and it was not my intention to suggest it did," she said.