Eric Adams Ends Re Election Bid Reshaping Race For New York Mayor

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has ended his long-shot bid for a second term leading the nation's largest city. Adams’ decision to drop out of the race as a one-term mayor, announced Sept. 28, narrows the field and likely improves the chances of fellow independent candidate and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. State representative and democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani upset Cuomo in June's Democratic primary in the overwhelmingly blue city. Adams announced his departure from the race in a video address posted to X.

"It has been my honor to be your mayor," he said. A 65-year-old Democratic mayor elected in 2021, Adams had been pressured to drop out of the race for months, with his administration plagued by scandal, resignations and corruption allegations. That pressure came most recently from Washington, where President Donald Trump has pushed for a one-on-one race against Mamdani, 33, who represents Queens in the New York state legislature. Without Adams, Cuomo likely gets a more favorable rematch against Mamdani in the November general election. Notably, Trump has not backed fellow Republican Curtis Sliwa, the founder of the Guardian Angels anti-crime patrol group. New York City Mayor Eric Adams is ending his reelection bid, a move long sought by rivals of Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani who have wanted to consolidate the opposition against him.

Adams announced his decision Sunday in a video posted to X, saying “despite all we’ve achieved, I cannot continue my reelection campaign, the constant media speculation about my future and the campaign finance board’s... “This campaign was for the underserved, the marginalized, the abandoned and betrayed by government,” Adams said. “Since then, it has been my honor to be your mayor, and I’m proud to say that we took that victory four years ago and turned it into action, making this city better for... Adams’ decision to leave the race adds another twist to a mayoral primary unlike any other in recent memory. Mamdani, a democratic socialist, notched a stunning win in June’s Democratic primary over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is now mounting an independent campaign.

Cuomo allies have long pushed Adams to withdraw to give Cuomo a better chance against Mamdani in November. President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, has also suggested the field should be narrowed, and one of his top aides, Steve Witkoff, met with Adams to discuss potential jobs in the Trump administration. On Sept. 28, 2025, New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) ended his independent re-election bid. In a video posted on X, Adams said, "Despite all we've achieved, I cannot continue my re-election 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 campaigned on expanding housing opportunities, reducing quality-of-life crimes, and removing illegal guns. In April, he withdrew from the Democratic primary to run as an independent in the general election. Adams’ decision to withdraw from the general election will make him the first New York City mayor to serve only one term since David Dinkins (D), who left office in 1993. Adams is the second major candidate to withdraw from the race, following James Walden’s (I) decision to end his bid on Sept. 2. Adams' and Walden’s names will remain on the ballot, as the deadline for independent candidates to remove their names was May 30.

On Sept. 11, Judge Jeffrey Pearlman denied Walden's state court petition to be removed from the ballot, which he filed after the city's board of elections rejected his removal request. Adams’ withdrawal leaves three noteworthy candidates in the race: Zohran Mamdani (D), Curtis Sliwa (R), and Andrew Cuomo (I). In five polls of a race between the three candidates, Mamdani has led four, and Cuomo has led in one. Two of the five polls were taken before any candidate's withdrawal, and three were taken after Walden’s withdrawal. The most recent of these polls, conducted by YouGov from Sept.

7 to 13, showed Mamdani leading with 44%, Cuomo with 30%, Sliwa with 17%, and 9% undecided or voting for a minor-party candidate. The poll was sponsored by CBS News and sampled 1,903 registered voters with a margin of error of 2.7%. New York City Mayor Eric Adams has announced he is ending his bid for re-election, just five weeks before voters go to the polls. Adams said "constant media speculation" about his future and the city campaign finance board's decision to deny him public matching funds throttled his campaign. His withdrawal narrows the race down to Democrat Zohran Mamdani, former governor Andrew Cuomo, and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa. Adams, elected in 2021 as a Democrat, was running as an independent after he was indicted for alleged bribery and fraud.

The indictment was later dismissed at the direction of the Trump administration. "I cannot continue my re-election campaign," Adams said in a video posted on social media on Sunday. The incumbent announced his decision Sunday in a post on X. New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced Sunday he is suspending his campaign for mayor, just weeks away from the closely watched election. Adams announced his decision in a video on X. The mayor, running as an independent, resisted calls to drop out previously from opponents of Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, who were concerned he and independent candidate former Gov.

Andrew Cuomo, who lost the Democratic primary and is running as an independent, would split the vote. Adams has been polling behind Mamdani, Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa. Mayor Eric Adams is ending his bid for reelection, he said in a video message Sunday. Only in America. Only in New York. Thank you for making my story a reality.

pic.twitter.com/efHuyBnITJ Adams was running as an independent after forgoing the Democratic primary in June. In a statement, a spokesperson from the mayor's campaign confirmed that Adams will continue to serve the rest of his term. The spokesperson added that the mayor "will not be doing one-on-one interviews" during this time frame.

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