NYC Mayor Eric Adams kicks off his reelection campaign, criticizes Mamdani platform

Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday kicked off his reelection campaign, ridiculing democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, his likely opponent, as naive and Mamdani's platform as "giving everything to everyone for free."

The event, at the steps of City Hall, came two days after former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's stunning loss in the Democratic primary to Mamdani, who has promised free child care and buses, a rent freeze on regulated apartments, municipal grocery stores and higher taxes on the rich.

Adams — who has seen his popularity plummet in the aftermath of his indictment, later dismissed on the orders of the Trump administration — said he is the one with the experience needed to run the city, not Mamdani, a 33-year-old who was once an obscure long shot.

"This is not a city of handouts," said Adams, 64. "This is a city of hands up." Speaking hours later on Don Lemon's YouTube newscast, Adams said that socialism "has failed across the globe."

Adams, a former police captain who grew up in poverty with a single mother, contrasted himself with Mamdani, a Ugandan-born Indian American who is a naturalized U.S. citizen and the son of a college professor father and renowned filmmaker mother.

"This election is a choice between a candidate with a blue collar," Adams said, and one with "a silver spoon."

At the kickoff, Adams touted his record as mayor, including lowering crime, helping the city return from the COVID-19 pandemic, building housing and settling labor union contracts.

"We have more to do," he said, including the launch of a citywide mental health initiative, advancing the vocational workforce, delivering cleaner streets, making New York City "the greenest city in America," and boosting the economy.

A statement issued by Mamdani's campaign said: "New Yorkers have been suffocated by a cost of living crisis and this Mayor has taken almost every opportunity to exacerbate it, all while partnering with Donald Trump to tear our city apart."

Adams' reelection announcement was attended by hundreds of supporters as well as hecklers who disrupted the event by calling him a criminal, to which Adams answered: "You can call me all the names you want, but I'm going to answer to only one: Mayor Adams!"

Mamdani, who represents Astoria, Queens, in the New York State Assembly, is expected to be declared the winner of the Democratic mayoral primary when election tabulation is complete on Tuesday. Cuomo, who resigned the governorship in 2021 in scandal, had been favored to win in almost every independent opinion survey — boosted by millions from corporations and billionaires — but came up short and conceded within two hours of the polls closing Tuesday night.

In a victory speech, Mamdani said he wants New Yorkers to have "a city where they can do more than just struggle — one where those who toil in the night can enjoy the fruits of their labor in the day — where hard work is repaid with a stable life. Where eight hours on the factory floor or behind the wheel of a cab is enough to pay the mortgage."

Adams described his coalition as one as diverse as the city he leads. Placards bearing his reelection slogan — "DELIVERS. NEVER QUITS" — were distributed and translated into multiple languages, including Arabic, Spanish, Russian, Yiddish and Bengali.

Adams withdrew from the Democratic primary soon after the city's campaign regulator denied him matching funds over the corruption allegations, and he is planning to run as an independent in the general election, on Nov. 4. The criminal case, alleging Adams traded luxury travel and campaign contributions in exchange for municipal favors, was dismissed earlier this year.

Among those in attendance Thursday were several in Adams' circle whose homes had been raided by the FBI in the investigation, including Winnie Greco, a former fundraiser and his onetime director of Asian affairs. Greco has not been criminally charged.

By Matthew Chayes

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Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.