NYC Mayoral Race

Ava Cai

August 8, 2025

As the 2025 New York City mayoral race reaches a heightening tension, the political landscape is being changed in the process—competing ideologies are now clashing with candidates’ personal ambitions. On June 24, 2025, Zohran Mamdani secured a double-digit victory against Andrew Cuomo after weeks of uncertainty leading up to the voting. With this sweeping victory, the 33-year-old democratic socialist from Queens promises reforms that include but are not limited to free city buses, rent freezes, universal childcare, and a $30 minimum wage by 2030. In response, Andrew Cuomo launches an independent bid for the November general election, determined to score a victory in a crowded field alongside New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Jim Walden, and Curtis Sliwa. 

In July, the Democratic party regroups under full support for Mamdani; Congressman Adriano Espaillat, who had backed Cuomo in the primary, switched his endorsement to Mamdani after sensing the Democratic nominee’s growing momentum and climbing popularity. Around the same time, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also announced her support for Mamdani. 

Recently, on August 6, 2025, Cuomo posted a statement on X, criticizing Zohran Mamdani for owning property in Uganda, a country with harsh anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Declaring that “silence is violence,” Cuomo compelled the mayoral candidate to “Boycott, Divest, and Sanction [his] property in Uganda and commit to stop spending tourism dollars there until they overturn their hateful, discriminatory laws which violate basic human rights.” Meanwhile, Mamdani, now the Democratic frontrunner for mayor, has pulled back on his rhetoric that targets the police, saying, “I am looking forward to working with the rank and file of our police department, the union leadership that represents those same police officers.” He finishes by clarifying that he will not defund the department. 

A little while after getting into the running, New York City Mayor Eric Adams was accused of having 50 fraudulent signatures on his re-election petition, with some signatures belonging to deceased people. Although the scandal is unlikely to remove him from the ballot, the news damaged his credibility in an already intense election race. 

Heading into the month of September, the narratives for the main running candidates are evident: Mamdani remains the front-runner according to the polling, Cuomo continues to target Mamdani, and Adam fights against his signature scandal. On the political stage, Mamdani exercises a pragmatic stance, Cuomo positions himself as a centrist alternative, and Adam struggles to keep his campaign up and running.