ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Mario Cuomo, a leading liberal voice who served three terms as governor of New York, died just hours after his son Andrew began his second term as the state's chief executive. He was 82.

The son of Italian immigrants, Cuomo played minor league baseball before embarking on a legal and political career. His oratory and his dedication to progressive policies made him a political star, but despite calls to seek the White House, he never made a run for president.Cuomo died Thursday of natural causes due to heart failure at his home, according to a statement released by the governor's office. He was surrounded by his family. Hours earlier, the younger Cuomo delivered an inaugural address in which he honored his father."He is in the heart and mind of every person who is here," Andrew Cuomo said. "He is here and his inspiration and his legacy and his experience is what has brought this state to this point. So let's give him a round of applause."President Barack Obama telephoned Cuomo Thursday and offered his condolences.Cuomo served as New York governor from 1983 through 1994 and became nationally celebrated for his ability to weave the story of his humble upbringing with ringing calls for social justice.He was also known for the presidential races he stayed out of in 1988 and 1992. Cuomo agonized so publicly over whether to run for the White House that he was dubbed "Hamlet on the Hudson."Cuomo's last public appearance came in November, when Andrew was re-elected governor of New York. The frail-looking patriarch and his son raised their arms together in victory at the election-night celebration.Political breakMario Cuomo's big political break came in 1982 when, as New York's lieutenant governor, he won the Democratic nomination for governor in an upset over New York Mayor Ed Koch. He went on to beat conservative millionaire Republican Lewis Lehrman.His reputation for eloquence was secured at the 1984 Democratic National Convention when he delivered his "Tale of Two Cities" keynote address, in which he told of the lessons he learned as the son of a grocer in New York City.The electrified delegates in San Francisco cheered and some wondered whether they had chosen the wrong presidential candidate in Walter Mondale.Cuomo was an unusually cerebral politician. He was prickly as well as eloquent. Cuomo regularly sparred with reporters, Republicans, fellow Democrats and even children. He once said "I didn't come into this business to be bland," and he rarely was.In early 1987, he was leading in the polls among prospective White House contenders when he said he would not be a candidate. A more protracted dance in 1991 ended with the filing deadline for the nation's first presidential primary. Cuomo walked into a packed news conference in Albany and cited a continuing budget battle with New York's Republicans in declining to run.Cuomo easily won re-election for governor in 1986 and 1990. He repeatedly vetoed legislation that would have restored the death penalty in New York, and he closed down the Shoreham nuclear power plant on Long Island. He also built 30 new prisons. Under Cuomo, the state budget grew from $28 billion to $62 billion.In 1993, he turned down an opportunity to be nominated by Clinton for a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court.Nineteen months later, Cuomo lost his bid for a fourth term.Early daysMario Matthew Cuomo was born on June 15, 1932, and grew up behind the small grocery store run by his parents in Queens.He attended St. John's University in New York City, and after graduating with honors in 1953, he spent a summer playing minor league baseball in Georgia for a Pittsburgh Pirates farm team. His professional baseball career ended after he was hit in the head by a pitch and spent several days in a hospital.Cuomo graduated from St. John's Law School in 1956, tied for top class honors, and soon after went into private practice. He came to the attention of New York City's political community in 1972 when he successfully mediated a housing dispute in Queens for then-Mayor John Lindsay.In 1974, Cuomo made his first run for public office, losing a Democratic primary for lieutenant governor.He lost a race for mayor of New York City to Koch in 1977, but was elected lieutenant governor in 1978.Following his tenure as governor, Cuomo joined the prestigious Willkie Farr & Gallagher law firm in Manhattan.Cuomo and his wife, Matilda, had three daughters and two sons.