New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced Sunday evening that he is dropping out of the mayoral race and will not seek a second term. The dramatic move, five weeks before the election, could curb the momentum of the race’s frontrunner — Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani, who has been criticized as anti-Israel. “Despite all we have accomplished, I cannot continue a campaign for re-election,” Adams said in a 90-minute video posted on X.
Zohran Mamdani, Democratic candidate for mayor of New York, offers New Year's wishes in Hebrew
(Video: X platform)
The main beneficiary of Adams’s withdrawal is likely to be former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who lost to Mamdani in the Democratic primary and is now running as an independent in the Nov. 4 contest. Mamdani, 33, led both in polls by a wide margin.
Adams’s exit reshapes the race and gives Cuomo a boost as he tries to close the gap by raising funds and courting voters who supported Adams. Still, at this stage polls show Mamdani holding a steady lead even after the mayor’s withdrawal.
Attitudes toward Israel and the war in Gaza have become a relatively central issue in the race. A recent poll showed about half of residents and roughly two-thirds of young voters back Mamdani’s approach to Israel, which he accuses of committing genocide.
New York’s Jewish community fears the consequences of a Mamdani win; he has said he would seek to halt city assistance to Israel. In recent weeks Mamdani has tried to present himself as a more moderate politician, but this month he sparked controversy by saying he would push to remove all municipal investments in Israel Bonds if elected.
Cuomo, who has previously described himself as a staunch supporter of Israel, this month offered unusually strong criticism of Israel in what was seen as an attempt to appeal to Mamdani voters. “I never stood with Bibi,” Cuomo told The New York Times, saying he had never had a political relationship with the prime minister and calling for an immediate end to the war. Last year Cuomo had expressed willingness to assist in legal defense for Netanyahu at the International Criminal Court in The Hague after an arrest warrant was issued alleging war crimes. Mamdani, for his part, has repeatedly said he would arrest Netanyahu if he came to New York if he were mayor.
When asked by The New York Times whether he agrees with Mamdani’s characterization of Israeli actions in Gaza as genocide, Cuomo sidestepped. “That requires legal analysis I have not done. But there is no doubt the change is dramatic, I think, for everyone. You see the nightly bloodshed on television,” the former governor said.
Adams’ decision came amid bleak polling, a string of investigations and public scandals, and the city campaign finance board’s refusal to provide public matching funds for his campaign. Adams, formerly a Democrat, ran for re-election as an independent. During the summer some New York officials urged Cuomo to drop out to avoid splitting the vote and to bolster Adams’s chances.
Adams said in a social-media video that he will remain in office until the end of his term but did not say what he will do afterward. He declined to endorse any remaining candidate and warned voters about what he called the “extreme and partisan agendas” of frontrunner Mamdani and of Cuomo.
Next stop: ambassador to Saudi Arabia?
People close to Adams told Ynet the mayor’s decision followed a Fox News poll showing a clear lead for Mamdani. Adams told associates on Saturday night: “It’s time to think.” They said he does not plan to leave public life and is seriously considering offers from the Trump administration, including a possible post as ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
Moses Davis, Adams’s adviser on Jewish community affairs, said of the mayor: “The mayor has always thought of the city’s good, not himself, and at this stage he concluded it is better not to continue the campaign. We are very proud of the work we have done in recent years, and we are now focusing on the next three months to ensure a safe city — especially for Jews, who have been the target of so much antisemitism.”