With just over a month left until the New York City mayoral election on Nov 4, moments ago, New York City Mayor Eric Adams ended his reelection bid amid sagging poll numbers and a push from political and business leaders to clear the way for Andrew Cuomo’s more potent challenge to Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani.
In a video on X announcing his decision, Adams, formerly a Democrat but now running as an independent after he repeatedly angered the Biden DOJ. and who was allegedly been promised a spot in the Trump admin if he were to quit the race, said that “despite all we’ve achieved, I cannot continue my reelection campaign. The constant media speculation about my future and the campaign finance board’s decision to withhold millions of dollars have undermined my ability to raise the funds needed for a serious campaign.”
The decision follows reports that Adams was entertaining potential job offers from both the Trump administration and the private sector in exchange for bowing out of the race and helping to clear a path for former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is polling in second place, to challenge Mamdani. According to Polymarket, Mamdani’s odds dipped fractionally on the news, but he is still overwhelmingly expected (with 83% odds) to turn NYC into a communist shithole.
Mamdani, a “democratic socialist”, aka a communist, whose pledges to freeze rents and hike taxes to pay for his agenda have rattled the business community, is favored to win the November election.
In the video, Adams didn’t endorse any other candidate in the mayoral race, though he warned that “extremism is growing in our politics” and urged New Yorkers “to choose leaders not by what they promised, but by what they have delivered.“
Adams had stepped up attacks on his opponents in recent months, calling Cuomo “a snake and a liar” and insinuating that Cuomo was behind the reports about Adams’ potential job discussions. While his name will still appear on the ballot, the decision to stop campaigning marks an end to a tumultuous year for Adams.
In 2024, he became the first sitting mayor in modern New York City history to be indicted on corruption charges by the Biden DOJ. Though charges were later dropped by the Trump administration, numerous corruption scandals and the speculation of a quid pro quo with the president have plagued the mayor. His approval ratings hit a 30-year low in March.
Adams’ campaign initially had a resurgence among wealthy donors after Cuomo’s decisive loss to Mamdani in June’s Democratic primary, but popular support for the mayor failed to pick up.
Polls consistently rank Adams in fourth place. A Suffolk University CityView poll released Tuesday showed Mamdani leading with 45% support, compared to 25% for Cuomo. The poll had Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa at 9% and Adams at 8%. But polls have also shown that in a two-way race with Adams and Sliwa out, Mamdani’s lead over Cuomo shrinks considerably.
The crowded field has fueled concern among both political and business leaders that Mamdani, who rose from relative obscurity to win the Democratic primary, has an easy path to Gracie Mansion.
President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, told reporters Sept. 4 that he hoped two candidates would drop out of the race, adding that he prefers “not to have a communist mayor of New York City.”
The second Black mayor in New York City’s 400-year history, Adams was hailed as the potential future of the Democratic party when he took office in January 2022. Instead, his single term as mayor was marked by scandal, overshadowing his successes in lowering crime rates and changing zoning laws to facilitate more housing development citywide.
While the charges against him were dropped, Adams has continued to face questions over members of his inner circle, many of whom have resigned or have been ensnared by law enforcement investigations.