The indictment of New York City’s Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday for charges that include bribery and soliciting foreign donations represents the lowest point of a failed mayoralty that has delivered stunningly little to the city it was meant to serve.

Adams was elected in 2021 vowing to improve public safety and trust in the Police Department. He said he would be a voice for working-class residents in the city. He promised a campaign focused on literacy in the nation’s largest public school system.

What New York City received instead was a mayor who filled City Hall with his cronies and patronage hires. Several of his highest-ranking appointments, including his former police commissioner, schools chancellor and a top deputy mayor, are under separate federal investigations, and several are among a widening group of city officials who have resigned, either in protest or disgrace.

According to federal officials, Adams used his office for personal gain, soliciting a contribution from foreign officials, committing wire fraud and bribery. He took discounted trips and luxury travel benefits from the Turkish government, the indictment said, and engaged in a conspiracy to accept and conceal foreign campaign contributions, which are illegal. In exchange, he let a Turkish consular building open without a proper Fire Department inspection.

The images on Thursday of federal agents arriving at Gracie Mansion before dawn brought reality into painful relief: New York City is without any clear leadership, a situation that is untenable.

Adams has said he is innocent and plans to fight the charges, as is his legal right. But even if he remains in office as the prosecution unfolds, it is hard to see him seeking a second term, or successfully persuading voters to give him one. For now, his most pressing struggle is to assure the public that the people’s business continues while he defends himself, which will be an immense task.

There are pressing needs in New York City, beginning with affordable housing, and few signs that City Hall is up to meeting those needs.

Rather than expend his political capital to push a promising plan within his administration to build more affordable housing, known as the City of Yes, Adams has focused much of his attention on pursuits like redesigning trash cans and fighting a war on rats. He has struggled to address the arrival of over 210,000 migrants, allowing City Hall to operate in a constant state of reaction.

The more than eight million residents of New York City deserve better.