New York City Mayor Eric Adams is staying in the city’s mayoral race, he announced Friday.

The Trump administration had exerted pressure on him to drop his bid to give former Gov. Andrew Cuomo a better chance to win against socialist Zohran Mamdani in November.

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He came out swinging at the start of the press conference.

“Andrew Cuomo is a snake and a liar,” Adams said, accusing Cuomo of “pushing black candidates out of races” in the past.

“I’m running for reelection, and I’m going to tell New Yorkers every day why I believe I should be the mayor of the city of New York in 2026,” he said.

Adams said earlier Friday that he was not dropping out of the race but left the door open for a Trump administration job. The Trump administration is reportedly planning on nominating Adams to be the ambassador to Saudi Arabia, according to the New York Times.

Adams denied reports that he’ll be in Washington, D.C., next week, saying he’ll be in New York City.

The mayor also said he believes the polls are wrong, saying that the same polls had Cuomo up in the Democratic primary, and that he will beat Mamdani.

“The voters will determine who’s the next mayor of this city, and I will respect the outcome from the voters. I love this city. I gave this city my all, and I’m going to continue to give them my all every day,” he said.

Adams took no questions at the press conference and offered no reaction to questions about a Trump administration job offer.

President Donald Trump was asked to react to Adams’s announcement in a press conference of his own. Trump said the only way to beat a “communist” like Mamdani is for everyone to get behind one opposing candidate, and that he will have to deal with a communist New York City mayor, vowing to mitigate any damage caused by his policies.

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“I don’t like communist mayors,” Trump said.

Adams is considered a long shot to win against Mamdani and dropped out of the Democratic primary to run as an Independent months ago. His corruption scandal and immigration association with Trump tanked his favorability ratings and voters’ favor for him in the polls.