New York City Mayor Eric Adams ended his reelection bid amid sagging poll numbers and a push from political and business leaders to clear the way for a more potent challenge to Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani.
Adams’ campaign spokesman Todd Shapiro said Sunday that the mayor, who was running as an independent, is leaving the race.
The decision follows reports that Adams was entertaining potential job offers from both the Trump administration and the private sector in exchange for bowing out of the race and helping to clear a path for former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is polling in second place, to challenge Mamdani.
Democratic socialist Mamdani, whose pledges to freeze rents and hike taxes to pay for his agenda have rattled the business community, is favored to win the November election.
In the past few months, Adams had upped his attacks against his opponents calling Cuomo “a snake and a liar” and insinuating that Cuomo was behind the reports about Adams’ potential job discussions.
