Andrew Cuomo And Eric Adams Are In A High-stakes Staring Contest

NEW YORK — Andrew Cuomo and Eric Adams refuse to get out of each others’ way in the New York City mayoral race — virtually sealing victory for democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani.

The former governor and the incumbent mayor are pursuing the same big-money donors and blue-collar voters. Up-for-grabs endorsees are fielding phone calls and texts from the candidates desperate for their support. And both men warn that a Mamdani victory would pose an existential crisis for the nation’s largest city.

And then there’s Republican Curtis Sliwa, the eccentric founder of the Guardian Angels, who will attract voters concerned with crime — further drawing away votes. Sliwa has said he would only drop out if he’s deceased.

“You’d be hard pressed to find a collection of New Yorkers who are more stubborn than Andrew Cuomo, Eric Adams and Curtis Sliwa,” said Democratic strategist Trip Yang. “The only shot that the anti-Mamdani forces have of stopping the Democratic nominee in a heavily Democratic city is to consolidate. The chances of that happening are slim to none.”

So far, institutional support has eluded both Adams and Cuomo in the wake of Mamdani’s earth-shattering June Democratic primary win. Politically crucial unions — including those that backed Cuomo in the primary — quickly endorsed the 33-year-old nominee’s mayoral bid. Local party leaders have thrown their weight behind Mamdani, though prominent Democrats like Gov. Kathy Hochul are on the sidelines. And wealthy donors have not coalesced behind either candidate in their independent bids.

Cuomo’s primary loss to Mamdani and Adams’ poor showing in general election polls call into question their viability in the five-candidate field. In fact, they’ve questioned each others' viability themselves and have accused each other of running ego-driven “spoiler” campaigns.

The competition for donors, endorsements and votes amounts to a high-stakes showdown between the two, who were once political allies. The outcome of that contest stands to determine the November election and the leadership of this deep blue city. Mamdani’s campaign — built on his personal charisma, social media presence and focus on affordability — has so far bested his more experienced rivals. His platform, nevertheless, has alarmed moderates who worry his far-left agenda will do irreparable damage to the citadel of American capitalism.

Their shared disdain for the far left has driven their opposition to Mamdani.

The former governor has tried to coax Adams out of the race, embracing a proposal from another independent candidate, Jim Walden, that the field by mid-September back the strongest possible challenger to Mamdani — a proposal that currently favors Cuomo’s strong second-place showing in most polls.

Cuomo has brushed aside his decisive loss in the closed party primary, chalking it up to a surge of left-leaning and first-time voters. The general election, which allows Republicans and independents to cast ballots, is far more representative of the electorate in an otherwise Democratic city.

“It shouldn’t be a game of chicken, it shouldn’t be random,” Cuomo said on CNBC. “Whoever is the stronger candidate, put that candidate forward and the candidate who is not as strong should defer.”

Adams, the city’s second Black mayor, isn’t budging. He’s accused his rival of trying to muscle Black candidates out of campaigns.

“He has a history when it comes down to Black elected officials,” Adams said to podcaster Stephen A. Smith. “I’m not calling him a racist. He has a problem against Black men.”

Cuomo counters by noting many of the Black politicians he’s challenged over the years, like former state Comptroller Carl McCall and ex-Gov. David Paterson, endorsed his primary campaign.

“Desperate people say desperate things,” Cuomo said in a separate interview with Smith. “Forget the implication, it’s factually wrong.”

Their battle — and hubris — has frustrated moderate Democrats, and delighted the left, as the political heavyweights slug it out this summer while trailing Mamdani in the polls.

Cuomo has retooled his campaign in the wake of his upset loss to Mamdani. He’s focused on short-form videos, speaking more with reporters and engaging directly with voters. Adams, who skipped the Democratic primary after months of playing footsie with President Donald Trump, has put his leadership qualities on display this week after a Midtown shooting left six people dead, including an NYPD officer.

The killing of officer Didarul Islam has placed renewed scrutiny on Mamdani’s prior support of slashing police budgets and his calls to disband a unit that responded to the shooting at a Manhattan office building.

Cuomo’s campaign strategy in recent weeks has been to focus on Mamdani’s far-left platform on policing, taxes and government spending — all of which the former governor says is out of step with most New Yorkers. Cuomo believes that shining a light on his rival’s plans for the city would weaken his poll numbers.

Support for Mamdani has been durable in the month since his primary win, though. And with Adams and Cuomo alike acknowledging this race isn’t big enough for the both of them, the dynamic has alarmed the city’s donor class as the feud spills over into competing trips to the Hamptons on Long Island — a summertime playground for the city’s wealthiest residents.

Adams and Cuomo have made sojourns to the eastern end of Long Island this summer to court supporters, with the former governor going as far as to joke he would leave for Florida if Mamdani became mayor.

The jibe, though, spoke to a larger anxiety for rich New Yorkers: Mamdani wants permission from Albany to sharply raise their taxes to fund his campaign promises like free bus service and government-run grocery stores.

As a result, most of these donors find Mamdani’s left-wing politics and criticism of Israel anathema. Those with the deepest pockets, like billionaire former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who gave more than $8 million to a pro-Cuomo super PAC, remain on the sidelines. Placing another bet on Cuomo — who lost to Mamdani by a stunning 12 points in the Democratic primary — or backing Adams, who has polled in single digits in some surveys, is a heavy lift.

“Right now the business class, when it comes to the mayoral election, they’re sitting in stunned disbelief,” Paterson said in an interview. “They can’t recognize that this actually happened.”

The uncertainty among business leaders gives Cuomo some time to make his case that Adams should leave the race in order to consolidate support behind him over the mayor, who trails Sliwa in some polls. Even as super PACs proliferate this summer — mostly with the intent of stopping Mamdani — donors remain nervous.

“I try to keep people calmed down,” said John Catsimatidis, a billionaire businessperson and Republican donor who is friendly with Cuomo and Adams. “By September things will work out.”

Longtime Democratic strategist Hank Sheinkopf, who is running one of at least five anti-Mamdani super PACs, believes it’s a mistake for Cuomo to aggressively attempt to force Adams out of the race — a posture that will hurt him with the moderate, older Black voter base he needs to win.

“There’s a long way to go before now and November,” Sheinkopf said. “You don’t know how any of these campaigns will be run. Andrew Cuomo and his super PAC were running a race from 1990.”

Adams and Cuomo have an overlapping base of Jewish and Black voters as well as blue-collar New Yorkers. In their successful elections, they won the backing of union leaders and rich donors. Their moderate politics on issues like policing appeal to centrist voters concerned about public safety. Both men are deal makers with transactional reputations in a city with complex centers of power.

That approach to politics, though, took them only so far.

The hard-charging Cuomo resigned from the governor’s office in 2021 after a bombshell state attorney general report determined he sexually harassed 11 women, which he denies. He has also refused to apologize for his controversial Covid policies and insists Republicans have ginned up the issue.

Adams was federally indicted last year on charges he received gifts from Turkish interests in exchange for pressuring city officials to approve the country’s new consulate building.

The mayor pleaded not guilty and, after ingratiating himself to Trump, his charges were dismissed in April. The relationship between the mayor and president has since soured with the Trump administration suing New York over its sanctuary city law.

Legal headaches connected to Adams’ circle persist. Ex-top adviser Ingrid Lewis Martin was indicted in December on state bribery and money laundering charges. That case remains pending, but additional charges are expected, according to two people familiar with the matter who were granted anonymity to discuss the situation. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office confirmed in March that a new grand jury was reviewing her case. If new charges become public before voting begins, it would present yet another challenge for Adams’ flagging campaign.

Lewis Martin stepped down before the charges against her became public. She declined to comment when contacted by POLITICO.

The former governor has his own political baggage aside from the Covid controversy and sexual harassment allegations. His long history with Trump creates its own liability among voters. Days after launching his mayoral comeback Cuomo said he could work with the Republican president. Trump supporters like finance titan Bill Ackman have met with Cuomo and Adams — fueling criticism from left-flank critics.

“Both of them have made a grave mistake in this standoff that instead of fixing their low favorability ratings, they’ve tried to figure out which Trump donors will help them fight off Mamdani,” said Bill Neidhardt, a former Bill de Blasio staffer who is running a pro-Mamdani super PAC.

Cuomo and Adams this summer are courting the same elected officials who all describe facing a similar conundrum: Back the long-shot bids of a former governor or mayor whom they have known for decades, or support Mamdani, a relative newcomer whose platform they abhor.

Assemblymember Eddie Gibbs, who backed Cuomo in the primary, has been a popular guy since the June primary. Mamdani texted Gibbs from Uganda. Adams called and agreed to have lunch with him.

“I’ve known Andrew 30 years; I’ve known Eric about 20,” Gibbs said. “It's a rough decision to make. They’re both going after the same base now.”

Michael Gartland and Jeff Coltin contributed to this report.