The Race for the NYC Democratic Nomination

Residents vote during the mayoral primary election at the Brooklyn Museum polling station in New York City on June 22, 2021. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

NEW YORK CITY—Ten people are running for the Democratic nomination this year. Candidates will soon start campaigning more fiercely, as the June 24 primary elections approaches.

The candidates will be challenging incumbent mayor Eric Adams for the Democratic nomination, who won by a slim margin in the 2021 primary against Kathryn Garcia. Against Republican challenger Curtis Sliwa, he won 67 percent to Sliwa’s 27 percent.

Common running points this election include housing affordability, better education, and public safety.

Eric Adams

Before becoming mayor, Adams was president of the Brooklyn Borough, a New York state senator, and a police officer. His campaign in 2021 was focused on safety, lowering crime rates, and reforming the New York Police Department while still keeping it strong, counter to the progressive Defund the Police movement at the time.

Adams has had low approval ratings since at least 2023, according to a Quinnipiac University poll. In 2024, the mayor suffered investigations and indictments alleging that Adams had taken bribes from Turkish officials as the Brooklyn Borough President and accepted straw donations during his 2021 campaign. Adams has contested the allegations. The March 5 Quinnipiac Poll shows that Adams sits at a 20 percent approval rating.

Eric Adams’ campaign website has nothing besides one quote, “No one will fight harder for you than me—because I grew up in a working family like yours. That is why I am working every day to make New York a safer, more affordable place.”

Eric Adams has said that what he can bring to the table that other candidates can’t is evidence of his ability to lead the city.

Andrew Cuomo

Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his daughter Michaela Cuomo greet the public at the New York City Columbus Day Parade in Manhattan, New York, Oct. 13, 2014. Samira Bouaou/Epoch Times

Andrew Cuomo has a lengthy record of public service, serving as the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 1997-2001, New York Attorney General from 2007-2010, and state governor from 2011-2021.

Cuomo resigned from his position as governor in 2021 amid allegations of sexual harassment, saying it was to avoid distractions during his government’s COVID recovery efforts. He denied intentional wrongdoing, saying his actions may have been misinterpreted.

A report from the New York Attorney General’s office found that Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women. He resigned a week after the report was published.

Cuomo was criticised over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and accused of a cover up of the number of deaths in nursing homes. Cuomo accepted blame for a lack of transparency about the deaths in nursing homes.

His major running points include housing affordability, public and subway safety, a clean and healthy city, combating the homelessness and mental health crisis, and fighting anti-Semitism.

Michael Blake

Rev. Michael Blake was a former White House aide to President Barack Obama and vice chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2017–2021. He has had unsuccessful runs for Congress and for NYC public advocate.

His key running points are a stronger economy, better care and education, affordable housing, and improving communities. His policy includes guaranteed jobs and guaranteed income for New Yorkers.

Brad Lander

Comptroller Brad Lander speaks during a rally for immigrant rights at City Hall in New York City on May 11, 2023. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Brad Landers is the NYC Comptroller, and was a city councilor between 2010 to 2021. In the past, he has been a progressive politician, getting endorsements from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren in his 2021 run for Comptroller.

Lander has been a vocal critic of current mayor Eric Adams, attending protests and rallies outside of city hall and calling for changes to Adams’ budgets.

Lander promises to be a strong and future focused leader, to make the city safer, make housing more affordable, and unite New Yorkers.

Zohran Mamdani

Zohran Mamdani uses his first name on the campaign trail. Zohran has been an NY assemblymember since 2021. He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. He was born in Uganda.

Zohran wants to freeze the rent on stabilized apartments, improve buses and make them free, make childcare free, create city-owned grocery stores, hold landlords more responsible for maintaining safe, habitable housing, and raising the minimum wage to $30 an hour.

He holds other progressive ideas. In a 2022 interview with the Jim Owles Democratic Party, he said that he is in favor of ending “mass incarceration in New York,” opposing the construction of prisons and jails in preference of restorative justice.

Zellnor Myrie

Zellnor Myrie uses his first name for campaigning. Zellnor has been an NY state senator for the Albany-Saratoga region since 2019.

Zellnor has a history of supporting abortion, regulations to address climate change, and gun control legislation in the State Capitol.

Zellnor’s campaign page is filled with accomplishments in Albany and what he has advocated for. His clear message is that he wants to make NYC more affordable and livable.

Jessica Ramos

New York Sen. Jessica Ramos (D-East Elmhurst) stands with protesters urging lawmakers to raise New York's minimum wage during a rally at the state Capitol, in Albany, N.Y., on March 13, 2023. Hans Pennink/AP Photo

Ramos has been a NY state senator for the Upper Manhattan region since 2019. She served as the lead Latino spokeswoman and liaison to the Spanish-language press. She is a daughter of Colombian immigrants.

In Albany, Ramos helped to raise the minimum wage, outlaw exploitive work practices, and support unions.

Ramos says she wants to ensure every New Yorker has affordable housing, prioritize clean energy, establish universal Pre-K, and improve the public transit systems.

Scott Stringer

New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer in New York City on May 20, 2014. Samira Bouaou/ The Epoch Times

Stringer served as the Manhattan Borough President, an NY assemblymember, and most recently, the NYC Comptroller from 2014-2021.

Stringer ran for the mayorship in 2021. His campaign ended after he was accused of sexual harassment by a former intern. He has since denied the accusation, and sued his accuser for defamation.

Stringer says his goal as mayor will be to increase public safety, end corruption in City Hall with a greater level of transparency, implement a new sanitation plan, and establish a $1 billion “Very Rainy Day Fund.”

Whitney Tilson

Whitney Tilson goes by his first name for his campaign. Whitney ran a hedge fund for 18 years, and supported major Democratic politicians like Obama and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.). He called for Joe Biden to step down as the Democratic nominee after Biden’s 2024 presidential debate with Donald Trump and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president. Whitney is also a founding member of “Teach for America,” an organization that gets promising teachers into schools in struggling areas.

Whitney is promoting himself as a competent, pro-business Democrat that New Yorkers can trust. He promises to revitalize the economy, tackle affordability, cut crime by 50 percent, end street homelessness, and fix public education.

Adrienne Adams

NYC Council Speaker Adrienne Adams at a media availability event in City Hall, NYC, Dec. 5, 2024. Oliver Mantyk/Epoch TImes

Adrienne Adams, no relation to Eric Adams, is the newest contestant. She was a city councilor, and has been the speaker of the council since 2022. She has to make a big effort to catch up in fundraising and name recognition in just four months.

Adrienne Adams has been a vocal critic of Mayor Adams in City Hall.

Her run for mayor was initiated after she was urged to do so by other public figures, most notably the Attorney General of NY Letitia James. Adrienne Adams’ message on why she is running was, “Somebody has to be the voice of the soul of the city.”