New York City Mayor Eric Adams endorsed former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the race to replace him.
Adams and Cuomo appeared Thursday afternoon at NYCHA’s Carver Houses, where they embraced as they met.
“Andrew and I are two kids from New York, and when you think about it, Andrew and his brother, and I have three of them, and brothers fight,” Adams said. “But when families are attacked, brothers come together. They understand that you have to protect the family.”
Adams admitted he was “angry” he’s not the one taking on Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee.
“But you know what, the city means more to me than anything, and it is time for us as a family to come together,” the mayor said.
It’s the endorsement Cuomo has been waiting for ever since Adams dropped out of the race, and represented a major mending of fences between two men who said harsh things about each other in the heat of the campaign. It was only last month Adams called Cuomo “a snake and a liar” as the two campaigned for Gracie Mansion.
Adams blasts Mamdani’s plan to freeze the rent
Adams went on to take Mamdani’s rent freeze promise to task.
“When you lie and state you can freeze rent – you can’t freeze rent in NYCHA. You can’t freeze rent in Mitchell-Lama. You can’t freeze rent in market rate housing. You can’t freeze rent, but you are lying and telling people you can do so. We’re fighting against a snake oil salesman who has sold us a bill of goods,” Adams said. “And who is his base of support? Gentrifiers. Gentrifiers have raised the rent in this city, and disrespected communities for far too long. And he is the king of the gentrifiers.”
“He believes Zohran is an existential threat to New York City, and we all have to do our best to make sure that Zohran does not become the next mayor,” Cuomo said. “I applaud him for that, and I have great respect for that.”
Cuomo, who is running as an independent, stressed he and Adams, who ran for reelection as an independent, are Democrats.
“Zohran is not a Democrat. Democratic socialist is a different thing. It shouldn’t even have the word ‘democratic’ in front of it. They are socialists. Look up the platform of the Democratic Socialists of America. It has nothing to do with the Democratic party,” Cuomo said.
Cuomo blasted Mamdani as divisive, citing concern he said Mamdani has sparked in the Jewish, Italian and LGBTQ+ communities.
Cuomo and Mamdani also tangled about his appearance on the Sid and Friends radio show, and a back-and-forth with host Sid Rosenberg about Cuomo’s charge that Mamdani lacks experience.
“Any given morning, there’s a crisis. And people’s lives are at stake. God forbid, another 9/11. Can you imagine Mamdani in the seat?” Cuomo said on the show.
“Yeah I could. He’d be cheering,” Rosenberg said.
Mamdani called it Islamophobia.
“To look at a city where one in eight New Yorkers are Muslim and say that, by virtue of your faith, you are worthy of suspicion. It is both incredibly disappointing and yet not surprising, given how Andrew has run this campaign,” Mamdani said.
“The host said whatever the host said. All right, that’s the host. Go talk to the host about that. I said, I said about 9/11, that’s another problem. Referring to what I have said repeatedly, which is, I have a problem with the fact that Zohran pals around with Hassan Piker, who said America deserved 9/11,” Cuomo said.
Endorsement comes on heels of final debate
Adams’ endorsement comes a day after Cuomo joined Adams courtside at the Knicks home opener following the final mayoral debate.
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Adams was running for reelection himself until late September, when he ended his campaign and exited the race. The outgoing mayor has been an outspoken critic of Mamdani and was rumored to be considering throwing his support behind Cuomo for the past week or so.
Mamdani said the two teaming up is an “illustration for New Yorkers of the fact that Eric Adams’ record is Andrew Cuomo’s agenda.”
“Today confirms what we’ve long known: Andrew Cuomo is running for Eric Adams’ second term. It’s no surprise to see two men who share an affinity for corruption and Trump capitulation align themselves at the behest of the billionaire class and the President himself. We are going to turn the page on the politics of big money and small ideas that these two disgraced executives embody and build a city every New Yorker can afford,” Mamdani said in a statement Thursday.
Cuomo, who served as governor of New York from 2013 until he resigned in 2021, lost the Democratic primary to Mamdani in June and has since been consistently polling second heading into the general election. A poll earlier this week showed Mamdani holding onto a double-digit lead in a three-way race with Republican Curtis Sliwa.
The poll, meanwhile, found it would be neck-and-neck between Mamdani and Cuomo if Sliwa were to exit.
Sliwa remains on the offensive about staying in
“This is corruption past, corruption present, and corruption waiting to happen again. Take a look at this. They can co-author the book ‘The Art of the Steal,'” Sliwa said in a statement.
Sliwa has repeatedly vowed to stay in the race, even parting with longtime WABC radio boss John Catsimatidis.
“Why would I drop out of the race? You think Republicans are going to vote for Andrew Cuomo?” Sliwa said during the debate.
Sliwa punched hard during an interview on CNBC Thursday morning in an effort to prove he deserves to stay on the ballot, and blamed Adams for the state of the race.
“He belongs in jail. He’s the reason there’s a Zohran Mamdani, because if he had done a halfway decent job he would’ve won. He’s an incumbent mayor. It would’ve been round two because I ran against him in 2021,” Sliwa said.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries to speak with Mamdani Thursday night
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told Rev. Al Sharpton he plans to speak with Mamdani Thursday night.
“I do hope to talk to the Democratic nominee either late today or tomorrow, in advance of early voting,” Jeffries said. “I do think that his decision to announce that he would reappoint [NYPD] Commissioner Jessica Tisch is a positive step in the right direction in terms of sending the message that, while he is going to of course focus on affordability — and that is the number one concern of the people in the communities I represent. And some things really need to be done, particularly in Black and Brown communities, which have suffered under the crushing weight of gentrification and displacement in neighborhoods like Bedford-Stuyvesant and Harlem … that’s going to be important and at the top of his agenda. But also that public safety of course will continue to be important in communities throughout the City of New York. I think it’s reassuring to a lot of folks that he’s going to continue the leadership at One Police Plaza.”
Key takeaways from the NYC mayoral debate
The candidates made their case to voters and covered a lot of ground during Wednesday night’s debate.
They were asked to address the recent federal immigration raids and how to handle threats from the Trump administration.
They also spoke about the NYPD and all agreed Commissioner Tisch should remain the department’s leader.
Mamdani called out Cuomo over his sexual harassment scandal as governor, and both Cuomo and Sliwa questioned Mamdani about his experience for the job and his stance on Israel.
In addition, the candidates offered up their ideas for mass transit and what should be done about the deadline to close Rikers Island.
Mamdani also refused to take positions on crucial ballot measures that would address the very housing issues he’s centered his platform around.
“What a shocker. Once he takes a position, he’ll change it anyway,” Cuomo said.
Mamdani responded with a zinger of his own.
“We heard from Donald Trump’s puppet, himself, Andrew Cuomo. He spent more money on a singing water fountain at LaGuardia Airport than he did on the average cost of an affordable housing unit,” Mamdani said.
Why did Mayor Adams drop out?
Adams took office as the city’s 110th mayor in January 2022 after serving as Brooklyn borough president.
He ended his reelection campaign on Sept. 28, but his name will still appear on the ballot under an independent line.
It has been a tumultuous past year for the mayor and his administration. He was indicted on federal bribery charges, which he denied, that were later dropped. The dismissal also raised questions about his relationship with President Trump and the influence of the White House on City Hall.
Adams maintained his innocence and his ability to lead the city, launching his reelection campaign over the summer. But most polls showed him garnering single-digit support, well behind Mamdani, Cuomo and Sliwa.
“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,” Adams said in a video announcement when he dropped out.
Independent candidate Jim Walden also ended his campaign and exited the race, but the Board of Elections ruled he missed the May 30 deadline to remove his name from the ballot.
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