New York City Mayor Eric Adams abandons reelection bid after a year of scandal, political turmoil

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams ended his struggling reelection campaign Sunday, an acknowledgement that he was no longer a serious contender in the contest after a year of scandal and political turmoil.

In a video released on social media, Adams spoke of his achievements as mayor, including a drop in violent crime. But he said “constant media speculation” about his future and a decision by the city’s campaign finance board to withhold public funding from his reelection effort made it impossible to stay in the race.

“Despite all we’ve achieved, I cannot continue my reelection campaign,” he said.

Adams did not directly mention or endorse any of the remaining candidates in the race, but he warned of “insidious forces” using local government to “advance divisive agendas.”

“Major change is welcome and necessary, but beware of those who claim the answer (is) to destroy the very system we built over generations,” he said. “That is not change, that is chaos. Instead, I urge leaders to choose leaders not by what they promise, but by what they have delivered."

Adams capitulation could potentially provide a lift to the campaign of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a fellow centrist who portrayed himself as the only candidate potentially able to beat the Democratic Party’s nominee, state Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani.

It was unclear, though, whether enough of Adams supporters would shift their allegiances to Cuomo to make a difference.

Mamdani, at 33, would be the city’s youngest and most liberal mayor in generations if elected. He beat Cuomo decisively in the Democratic primary by campaigning on a promise try to lower the cost of living in one of the world’s most expensive cities.

Three remaining candidates

In a statement released after Adams' announcement, Mamdani took aim at Cuomo.

“New York deserves better than trading in one disgraced, corrupt politician for another. On November 4th, we are going to turn the page on the politics of big money and small ideas and deliver a government every New Yorker can be proud of,” Mamdani said.

Cuomo, in a statement on social media, praised Adams for “putting the well-being of New York City ahead of personal ambition.”

He also did not mention Mamdani by name, but echoed Adams’ warning about unspecified “extremist forces.”

“We face destructive extremist forces that would devastate our city through incompetence or ignorance, but it is not too late to stop them,” Cuomo said.

Republican Curtis Sliwa also remains in the race, though his candidacy has been undercut from within his own party; Trump in a recent interview called him “not exactly prime time.”

Rough showing in polls

Speculation that Adams wouldn’t make it to Election Day has been rampant for a year. His campaign was severely wounded by his now-dismissed federal bribery case and liberal anger over his warm relationship with President Donald Trump. He skipped the Democratic primary and got on the ballot as an independent.

Polls conducted in early September illustrated his challenges. One poll by The New York Times and Siena University and another by Quinnipiac University showed likely voters favoring Mamdani over Cuomo, with Sliwa and Adams trailing further behind.

The Quinnipiac poll suggested the gap between Mamdani and Cuomo could narrow if Adams dropped out. The Times/Siena poll suggested that if both Adams and Sliwa withdrew, Mamdani’s advantage over Cuomo could shrink even further.

Sliwa, though, has repeatedly insisted he will not quit.

“Curtis Sliwa is the only candidate who can defeat Mamdani,” his spokesperson, Daniel Kurzyna, said Sunday.

In recent weeks, Trump administration intermediaries interested in blocking Mamdani’s path to victory by getting him into a one-on-one matchup with Cuomo had approached Adams to see if he could be coaxed out of the contest with an offer of a government job.

Amid reports on those discussions, Adams called a news conference where he pledged to keep running and derided Cuomo and Mamdani as “spoiled brats.” Later, on social media, Adams called Cuomo “a liar and a snake.”

Indictment overshadows progress

Adams, 65, is the city’s second Black mayor. A former New York City police captain and Brooklyn borough president, he took office in 2022 promising to crack down on crime and revitalize a city still bouncing back from the coronavirus pandemic.

On his signature issue, he succeeded. Crime rates that ticked upward after COVID-19 hit the city have fallen back to pre-pandemic levels, though it is unclear how much that had to do with Adams’ policies.

But scandals and corruption probes have crippled Adams’ chances at another term.

Over a head-spinning period of weeks last year, his police commissioner, schools chancellor and several deputy mayors resigned following a series of federal raids on their homes. None have faced criminal charges.

Then, in late September, federal prosecutors brought fraud and bribery charges accusing Adams of accepting illegal campaign contributions and steep travel discounts from a Turkish official and others in exchange for accelerating the opening of Turkey’s diplomatic building, among other favors.

Trump intervenes

Adams denied wrongdoing and pledged to remain in office. But he also began speaking warmly about Trump, then seen as having a growing chance of regaining the White House. He defended Trump in media briefings, urged his party to tone down rhetoric against the Republican and refrained from criticizing him.

After Trump won, Adams met with Trump’s border czar, Thomas Homan.

Then, in February, Trump’s Justice Department ordered federal prosecutors in New York to drop the charges against Adams so the mayor could assist with the Republican president’s immigration agenda.

The extraordinary intervention triggered fresh tumult in City Hall and the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office, with some of Adams’ closest allies suggesting he had struck a deal with the White House for his freedom.

Adams announced he would skip the June Democratic primary but would stay in the race.

In late August, Adams former top adviser — who served as a campaign volunteer — was hit with fresh bribery charges. Another former aide was removed from the campaign after handing a potato chip bag full of cash to a local reporter.