New York City Mayor Eric Adams pushed back against speculation that he could swap political parties, insisting that he is a “true blue” Democrat while also being a “true blue-collar” worker.
Last week, Adams was asked in an interview about potentially rejoining the Republican Party, which he was a part of from 1995 to 2002, to which he responded that he is “part of the American party.” However, he denied any possibility of this happening, stating it is “amazing” how headlines in the press industry take on their own “creative writing style.”
“I never stated that I was not running as a Democrat,” Adams told the press on Monday. “I ran as a Democrat as a senator, as a borough president, and as a mayor, and I won. I’m running as a Democrat. I was on channel 11, and they asked the same question. I said the same thing. I am true blue, but I’m also a true blue-collar mayor, and the American people in general, but specifically in the city of New York, they’re tired of this squabbling. After campaigns are over.”
Adams added that he could not think of anything more “infuriating” for voters than seeing politicians having an “intellectual conversation” on their loyalty to political parties. He then contended that when he became a police officer and later an elected official, he “pledged allegiance to the United States of America.”
The mayor also assessed that the Democrats have not done “a good job” at talking to working-class voters, saying he had been making this argument even before the 2024 election season. He added that voters are “hurting” while Democrats have been arguing with each other, and he called for his party to have “a working-class conversation.”
Part of the speculation over Adams leaving the Democratic Party was likely due to his openness to work with President-elect Donald Trump and the incoming administration, specifically over Trump’s proposed deportation plans. Adams stated last week he wanted “people to talk to each other” and would not be “warring” with the incoming administration and that he will speak with incoming border czar Tom Homan this Thursday.
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In October, Adams pushed back against “silly questions” over whether or not he believed Trump is a fascist and argued the country needs to be “the United States and not the divided states” once the election ended. He also said that “someone” should speak up and say “enough of this” in an effort to turn down the political temperature within the country.
Adams was indicted on federal corruption charges in September, though he has maintained his innocence. In addressing Adams’s indictment, Trump noted that the mayor was indicted after Adams “came out” against the city’s illegal immigration, adding that he is unsure if the indictments are “legit.”