On September 28, 2025, New York City mayor Eric Adams announced that he would not seek re-election, dropping out of the mayoral race. In a video, he attributed his decision to the constant media scrutiny surrounding his candidacy. He also cited “the campaign finance board’s decision to withhold millions of dollars” as another reason for withdrawing. He said:
“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.”
Without naming names, Adams also seemingly took a dig at the Democrats and their nominee, Zohran Mamdani, one of the frontrunners in the race. He said:
“Major change is welcome and necessary, but beware of those who claim the answer to destroy the very system we built together over generations. That is not change, that is chaos.”
He also called for greater unity among New York City residents and suggested that several individuals and groups were trying to use “divisive agendas” for their own interests. Eric Adams’s message was met with speculation, coming just weeks before the mayoral election. Many believed that Adams had taken a bribe from influential people to step down.
People discussed how Donald Trump had helped clear his name from multiple bribery and fraud charges previously and suggested that Adams was removing his name as a favour to reduce competition for Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent but has close ties to the Trump administration. With Cuomo’s victory, Trump and his party could gain greater influence over New York City, one of the most important cities in the United States. Mamdani has also expressed a similar view during a September 29, 2025, interview on Democracy Now, saying that “it takes two to tango,” referring to Trump and Cuomo’s efforts against him.
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