New York City Mayor Eric Adams and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo are calling on each other to drop out of the mayoral race to stop Democrat nominee Zohran Mamdani.
In an interview Monday, Adams said Cuomo should step aside after losing to Mamdani in a Democrat primary. Both are running on independent party platforms.
"I think he really should do an analysis and say, Give Eric an opportunity to run against [Zohran]," Adams said on CNBC’s Squawk Box. "I’m the sitting mayor of the city of New York, and you expect for me to step aside when you just lost to Zohran by 12 points? They heard your message. You lost … that’s the highest level of arrogance."
Adams criticized Cuomo for undermining Black candidates, naming former Gov. David Paterson and state Comptroller Carl McCall.
A spokesperson for Cuomo said Adams does not have a path to victory.
"This is the time to put aside the usual political selfishness and agree to do what is truly best for all New Yorkers," Rich Azzopardi said in a statement.
Jim Walden, who is running an independent campaign, has proposed Adams, Cuomo, and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, pledge to back a single candidate determined by a "rigorous, independent poll conducted weeks before the race."
"Socialism represents an existential risk to the city — politically, financially, and morally," Walden said last week. "Defeating socialism is now central to this mayoral campaign."
Polling has consistently shown Cuomo leading Adams in a general election, Politico reported. Adams said he plans to highlight Mamdani’s unrealistic promises.
"We’re going to mobilize a million new voters who woke up on the day after the election, on the 25th, and said: Oh my god, let’s listen to what [Mamdani] is saying," Adams said.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.