New York City Mayor Eric Adams has abandoned his run for reelection, a move that could benefit his fellow Democratic Party outsider, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

The narrowed field leaves New Yorkers with the choice between Democratic candidate and front-runner Zohran Mamdani, current independent and failed Democratic primary candidate Cuomo, and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.

Recommended Stories

• Eric Adams drops out of New York City mayoral race
• Obama Foundation neglects Chicago taxpayers with funds sent to Tides group
• How Loudoun County’s commercial tax base initiative turned Virginia into a data center hub

ERIC ADAMS DROPS OUT OF NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL RACE

Adams consistently polled between 6% and 12% throughout September. Those who supported him are most likely now to give their votes to the other moderate Democrat and relative party outcast, Cuomo. However, Adams did not endorse any candidate in his video announcement suspending his campaign.

Mamdani was hovering at 45%, according to the most recent poll from Suffolk University from mid September. Cuomo came in about 20 points behind at 25%. Sliwa secured 11% of the vote, and Adams just 7%.

If both Adams and Sliwa were to hypothetically drop out of the race, most of their candidates would go to Cuomo, a New York Times/Siena poll from early September found. In a hypothetical head-to-head between Cuomo and Mamdani, Cuomo’s numbers would jump up to 44% and Mamdani’s would rise to 48% the poll found, closing Mamdani’s lead to only four points. Sliwa has committed to staying in the race, regardless of the electoral advantage polls suggest it gives Mamdani.

Cuomo touted Adams’s American dream story from “squeegee boy and mailroom clerk” to Mayor as “undeniably one of resilience,” saying the mayor “has much to be proud of” in a post on X Sunday.

“The choice @ericadamsfornyc made today was not an easy one, but I believe he is sincere in putting the well-being of New York City ahead of personal ambition. We face destructive extremist forces that would devastate our city through incompetence or ignorance, but it is not too late to stop them,” Cuomo said, alluding to his competitor, Mamdani.

President Donald Trump has reportedly been trying to push Adams to get out of the race and join his administration to consolidate Mamdani‘s opposition around Cuomo.

“Donald Trump and his billionaire donors might be able to determine Eric Adams and Andrew Cuomo’s actions but they will not dictate the results of this election,” Mamdani, a democratic socialist assemblyman, said in a Sunday statement regarding Adams’ decision to drop out.

“New York deserves better than trading in one disgraced, corrupt politician for another. On November 4th, we are going to turn the page on the politics of big money and small ideas and deliver a government every New Yorker can be proud of,” Mamdani said.

Adams has blamed media coverage for hurting his campaign, including reports that his advisers were in talks to put Adams up as Trump’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia amid pressure for him to drop out.

“All these rumors, all these lies. Folks had me going to Saudi Arabia. They had me going to HUD. They had me going to the Yankee game. They had me going to Washington on Monday,” Adams said on Sept. 12. “The media should not be the hidden anti-Eric Adams votes. … This is hurting my ability to campaign. It’s unfair. It’s not right. And you’re not doing it to any other candidate but me.”

Sliwa, who Trump has criticized as “not exactly prime time,” is hoping to gain some of the would-be Adams voters’ support in his long-shot candidacy for mayor.

“Curtis Sliwa is the only candidate who can defeat Mamdani. Our team, our resources, and our funding are unmatched. Most importantly, we have the best solutions to help working people afford to stay in New York City and feel safe,” Daniel Kurzyna, a spokesperson for Sliwa’s campaign, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.

NYC REPUBLICAN MAYORAL HOPEFUL SLIWA SAYS CUOMO CAMP TRIED TO BRIBE HIM TO EXIT RACE

Adams’s name will remain on the ballot, as he dropped out after the deadline to remove himself from the ballot, according to the New York Times.

New Yorkers will decide who their next mayor will be on Nov. 4.