Nyc Mayoral Hopefuls Shrug Off Latest Corruption Allegations Engulfing Adams Team

NEW YORK — The leading contenders to replace New York City Mayor Eric Adams treated the latest corruption allegations roiling his inner circle as more of the same — and more reason to turn the page on his tumultuous tenure.

But none called Thursday for Adams to abandon his long-shot bid for reelection. He doesn’t pose a formidable threat anyway as a candidate weighed down by years of scandals, including his own, now-dismissed bribery charges. Adams is polling a distant fourth — behind the Republican nominee in the deep blue city — with political newcomer Zohran Mamdani as the heavy favorite to succeed him.

Even former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who would most benefit from an Adams-less race because their bases overlap, wouldn’t go as far as telling the mayor to drop out or resign.

“People have to decide who the next mayor is going to be,” Cuomo told reporters Thursday in Manhattan. “I’m saying I don’t believe he is a viable choice.”

The indictment of Adams’ former chief adviser and longtime friend Ingrid Lewis-Martin on charges spanning four alleged bribery schemes rocked City Hall on Thursday but barely made ripples in the race for mayor. The incumbent, a retired NYPD captain with a blue-collar upbringing once regarded as the Democratic Party’s next star, is highly unlikely to win another term. He had already skipped the Democratic primary in June in favor of heading straight to the general election and running as an independent.

The incumbent has touted falling crime rates, record job growth and hundreds of thousands ofnew housing units in the pipeline as evidence that he deserves four more years running the country’s largest city. But many of those boasts are overblown and the mayor’s legitimate accomplishments have been overshadowed by the stench of corruption.

Adams sought to distance himself from the latest indictments, noting that he is not accused of wrongdoing. But it’s a much heavier lift demonstrating he’s moved on from close friends who’ve been investigated and charged with corruption because they — especially Lewis-Martin — have been a visible presence at his recent campaign rallies.

Lewis-Martin’s indictment came one day after another former Adams aide, Winnie Greco, handed a reporter with THE CITY a chip bag with a wad of cash hidden inside after an Adams campaign event.

Cuomo, running as an independent after losing the Democratic primary to Mamdani by nearly 13 points, paid homage to the surreal incident Thursday by giving out bags of chips at his news conference and telling reporters: “Enjoy the potato chips but they’re just potato chips.”

The former governor returned to his argument that he’s best positioned to stand up to Donald Trump on behalf of New Yorkers, calling Adams a “wholly owned subsidiary” of the president and arguing of a Mamdani mayoralty, “I will bet you Trump takes control of New York City within hours of his inauguration.”

Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist state assemblymember, has argued he’d aggressively resist Trump’s policies while Cuomo keeps the president close. Despite his inexperience and far-left policies, he looks poised to be the next mayor and took a cautious, low-profile approach to the latest corruption scandals buffeting City Hall.

His statement about Lewis-Martin’s indictment stuck to the affordability theme that propelled him to the Democratic nomination.

“While New Yorkers struggle to afford the most expensive city in America, Eric Adams and his administration are too busy tripping over corruption charges to come to their defense,” Mamdani said. “Corruption isn’t just about what a politician gains, it’s about what the public loses.”

Adams gave no indication Thursday that he plans to leave the race for mayor. Even if he does, Mamdani would remain the frontrunner albeit with Cuomo as steeper competition, said Democratic strategist Trip Yang, who is not working on any of the mayoral campaigns.

“If Adams drops out, polling has shown that most of the support goes to Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo goes from maybe a 20-point deficit to a 10-point deficit,” Yang said. “If Adams drops out, it’ll give Andrew Cuomo a lot more energy than Cuomo’s new videos for sure.”

Yang was referencing the social media videos the former governor has been posting that seek to emulate how Mamdani reached younger, more online voters in the primary.

New York City Council Member Lincoln Restler, a longtime Adams adversary, told POLITICO, “He appears so deluded and disconnected from the reality of the failures of his administration that I really do believe he’s going to run through the tape and get 7 percent of the vote.”

City Council Member Chi Ossé, a Mamdani supporter, said the Lewis-Martin indictment might not even hurt Adams that much in the race.

“He is polling under 10 percent as the currently elected mayor,” Ossé told POLITICO. “Those who are with him are with him despite all of his corruption — and I’m sure they’ll continue to be with him after this.”

Curtis Sliwa, the Republican candidate for mayor who’s polling ahead of Adams in Democrat-dominated New York City, knocked both the mayor and the former governor as elected officials shrouded by corruption. Top Cuomo adviser Joe Percoco was convicted on federal bribery charges but the U.S. Supreme Court tossed the case in 2023. The former governor himself faced calls to resign amid sexual harassment allegations four years ago and has more recently said he regrets stepping down.

“For him to start attacking Eric Adams as being in charge of a corrupt administration, well, if he’s pointing one finger, two fingers are pointing back at him,” Sliwa said.

But even Sliwa didn’t want Adams to drop out, saying he trusts the voters of New York to make the right choice.

Jeff Coltin contributed to this report.