Posted May 13, 2025 | by KimS | in 2025 Elections, DemDaily, Democratic Party, Mayors

DemDaily: New York, New York: The Race to City Hall

May 13, 2025

Just six weeks out from the New York City Mayoral primary, the outcome is still far from determined as the voters contemplate a slate of 14 candidates, including an indicted incumbent, a former Governor, and many of the city's major political bosses and elected officials.

In the truly blue city, the winner of the Democratic Primary is presumed to be the eventual winner of the General Election, held this year on November 4, 2025.

Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, a former Brooklyn Borough President, four-term State Senator, and NYC police Captain, won the 2021 general election contest against GOP Guardian Angels founder & radio talk show host Curtis Silwa, 67.4%-27.9%.

New York City is the nation's largest city with a population of 8.8 million, accounting for approximately 40% of the state's population. "The Big Apple" has a $1.3 trillion GDP, greater than 180 countries, and boasts more millionaires than any city in the world. With as many as 800 languages spoken in its metro area, New York is also the most linguistically diverse city on earth.

New York City is the nation's largest city with a population of 8.8 million, accounting for approximately 40% of the state's population. "The Big Apple" has a $1.3 trillion GDP, greater than 180 countries, and boasts more millionaires than any city in the world. With as many as 800 languages spoken in its metro area, New York is also the most linguistically diverse city on earth.

As a Democratic incumbent seeking a second term, Adams would normally be heavily favored for reelection, but in September 2024 he became the first sitting mayor in modern New York City history to face criminal charges.

The indictments, which stemmed from a broader New York City public corruption investigation initiated by the FBI in 2022, included one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States; one count of wire fraud; two counts of soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals; and one count of soliciting and accepting a bribe.

Following the November 2024 presidential election, Adams met with senior administration officials and, in January 2025, with Trump himself at Mar-a-Lago, to discuss the Mayor's support for the president's immigration policy.

In February 2025, at the direction of the White House, the Department of Justice ordered prosecutors to drop the federal charges against Adams, and on April 2, 2025, the case was dismissed with prejudice (See: The Case of Eric Adams).

On April 3, Adams announced that he would run for reelection as an Independent instead of running in the Democratic primary. The move upends the dynamics of the general election, opening up the possibility of a four-way race between Adams as the Independent, a Republican candidate, a Democratic candidate, and a Working Families Party (WFP) candidate.

The WFP, which often ultimately supports the Democratic nominee, endorsed four of Adams' challengers in late March. It plans on consolidating its endorsement to a single challenger in May, who is best positioned to capture the progressive vote and rival Cuomo, a moderate.

Adams had raised $4.4 million as of March 13, with $3 million on hand, without public matching funds.

The Field
Among Democrats, the leading contender is former three-term Governor (2011–2021) Andrew Cuomo who announced his run March 1 and has led most of the Democratic primary polls. Cuomo, the son of former Governor Mario Cuomo (1983-1994), previously served as New York Attorney General (2007–2010) and as US Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Bill Clinton (1997–2001).

In August 2021, however, he resigned from office following an investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James that found Cuomo guilty of numerous sexual misconduct allegations by women who had worked for him. James declined to file criminal charges against Cuomo, who maintains his innocence.

As of March 13. Cuomo's campaign had raised $1.5 million, with $1.2 million in the bank. FixTheCity, a super PAC supporting Cuomo, had raised $6.2 million as of late April and will report a $1 million contribution from food delivery app DoorDash this week. Cuomo's campaign has twice been denied matching funds due to clerical errors and improper collusion between the campaign and Fix the City on an ad buy.

Other contenders include State Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, and former NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer. Also running are State Senator Zellnor Myrie, former Assemblyman and DNC Vice Chair Michael Blake, State Senator Jessica Ramos and investor and Hedge Fund Manager Whitney Tilson.

Former assistant US Attorney Jim Walden is challenging Adams for the Independent nomination, and 2021 GOP mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa is expected to again be the Republican nominee.

At the end of the first fundraising quarter, Mamdani had $7.5 million cash on hand, Lander had $4.6 million in the bank, Stringer had $3.7 million on hand, and Myrie $2.9 million. The remaining candidates had not met the threshold for matching funds.

New York uses a Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) electoral system in which voters rank up to five candidates in order of their preference on their ballots. If no candidate wins 50%+ in the first round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. The votes of the eliminated candidate are then reallocated to the second choice of the last-place finisher's voters. The process is repeated until a winner is declared from the final two.

New York uses a Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) electoral system in which voters rank up to five candidates in order of their preference on their ballots. If no candidate wins 50%+ in the first round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. The votes of the eliminated candidate are then reallocated to the second choice of the last-place finisher's voters. The process is repeated until a winner is declared from the final two.

According to an April 7–10, 2025, Siena College/AARPNewYork poll of registered NYC voters, when respondents were asked for their first choice, Cuomo received 34% of the vote, placing him well ahead of Mamdani (16%), Lander (6%), Stringer (6%), and Adrienne Adams (6%). Under the ranked choice voting system, Cuomo ultimately crossed the 50% threshold after 6 candidates were eliminated, with Mamdani finishing at 27% and Lander at 19% (MOE: ±3.7%).