New York City’s 2025 mayoral race is shaping up to be one for the history books—full of surprises, reversals, and more than a few bruised egos. Just months ago, it looked like incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat who swept into office in 2021, would be a shoo-in for reelection. But as of August 2025, the city finds itself in the midst of a wild, multi-candidate contest, with familiar faces and unexpected upstarts battling for the keys to Gracie Mansion.
It all began unraveling last fall, when Mayor Adams was indicted on federal corruption charges, according to a detailed report from City & State. The charges shook the city’s political establishment and set off a stampede of Democrats eager to challenge him in the primary. But then came another twist: after President Donald Trump took office, the Department of Justice abruptly dropped the charges against Adams. Vindicated in the eyes of some, but politically battered, Adams made the unprecedented decision to drop out of the Democratic primary and run as an independent in the general election.
That left the Democratic field wide open. Eleven candidates jumped into the fray, including former Governor Andrew Cuomo, whose campaign was buoyed by endorsements from major city power brokers and a formidable war chest. Cuomo, who had once been the state’s most powerful politician, was widely expected to cruise to victory. But, as Gothamist recounts, he was soundly defeated by Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old Assembly member and self-described democratic socialist from Queens. Mamdani’s victory, by about eight percent of the vote after the first round of ranked choice counting on August 11, 2025, stunned the city’s political class and signaled a seismic shift in the Democratic Party’s base.
Mamdani’s platform is as ambitious as it is unconventional. He’s promised to freeze rents for stabilized units, make city buses and child care free, launch a Department of Community Safety, and even build public supermarkets. Backed by the Working Families Party, major labor unions like the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council and 32BJ SEIU, and progressive icons including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jerry Nadler, Mamdani has built a coalition that spans young voters, Muslim communities, and South Asian New Yorkers—groups energized by his pro-Palestine stance and advocacy for taxi medallion debt relief.
“Mamdani did a good job of making sure that he got his message out in that regard,” said Congressman Gregory Meeks, the influential chair of the Queens County Democratic Party, speaking to reporters on August 12. Meeks, who had backed Cuomo both personally and as party chair ahead of the primary, acknowledged Mamdani’s success in reaching younger voters and argued that the Democratic Party must expand its outreach. “We’ve got to reach out in different ways. It used to be that you would just reach out and be working to get the triple prime voter, that’s where your focus is. You’ve got to expand past that.”
Yet, even as Democratic organizations in Manhattan, Staten Island, and Brooklyn have endorsed Mamdani since his primary win, Meeks remains on the fence. “I have not spoken with [Mamdani] yet, I’m looking forward to doing that,” Meeks told the press, adding that any endorsement would only come after consulting with other Queens party leaders and elected officials, some of whom have vowed never to back the socialist candidate. “I would have to sit down with many members of the Queens County Democratic organization, the district leaders, elected officials from Queens County, we would talk amongst ourselves also, and then make a decision.”
Meanwhile, Adams is running as an independent, trying to convince voters he deserves a second term despite a rocky tenure marked by scandal and staff turnover. He’s raised $6.4 million in private funds, with $4.3 million on hand as of July 11, but has been denied public matching funds and faces record-low approval ratings. His platform focuses on public safety and affordability—delivering a “safer, more affordable city,” closing illegal smoke shops, and touting his successful push for the City of Yes zoning reform. Adams, who has also petitioned for the “Safe Streets, Affordable City” and “EndAntiSemitism” ballot lines, is suing to keep both on the November ballot.
Adams’ challenges are not just political. His administration has seen a revolving door of top aides and police commissioners—Jessica Tisch, his current police commissioner, is his fourth in as many years. He also faces skepticism from both progressives and conservatives, with the former critical of his ties to Trump and the latter unconvinced by his independent run. Still, Adams points to falling shootings and murders since 2022, a landmark zoning overhaul, and new union contracts as evidence of his accomplishments.
Cuomo, undeterred by his primary defeat, is also running as an independent, appearing on the “Fight and Deliver” ballot line. He’s raised $8.3 million, with $1.2 million remaining as of July 11, and his allies have funneled millions more through political action committees. Cuomo’s campaign is built on his gubernatorial record—marriage equality, paid family leave, gun control, and infrastructure upgrades—but he’s also burdened by the scandals that led to his 2021 resignation, including sexual harassment allegations and scrutiny over his handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes. Black voters, a key bloc in city elections, gave him a boost in the primary, especially in Meeks’ 5th Congressional District, but many former supporters have since defected to Mamdani.
Republican Curtis Sliwa, a perennial candidate known for his red beret and leadership of the Guardian Angels, is mounting another run. Despite the city’s deep blue lean—registered Democrats outnumber Republicans 7 to 1—Sliwa is undeterred. He’s raised $2.4 million, with $2 million on hand as of August 6, and is running on a platform of combating crime, opposing migrant shelters, and protecting animals. Sliwa, who survived a notorious assassination attempt in 1992, insists he won’t bow to pressure to drop out and clear the way for a moderate coalition against Mamdani. “The Trump candidate is Eric Adams,” he quipped, underscoring the unusual alliances at play.
Independent candidate Jim Walden, a Brooklyn-based attorney known for taking on the mafia and advocating for NYCHA residents, has also entered the race. With $3.8 million raised and $1.6 million in the bank, Walden is pitching himself as a corruption-fighting technocrat, drawing comparisons to Michael Bloomberg. He’s called for non-Mamdani candidates to unite behind a single front-runner to stop the socialist Democrat, but so far, the field remains crowded.
Minor party candidates Irene Estrada (Conservative Party) and Joseph Hernandez (Quality of Life Party) are also on the ballot, though neither has raised significant funds or polled among the leading contenders. The Working Families Party will replace its placeholder candidate with Mamdani for the general election, further consolidating left-wing support.
All of this is unfolding against a backdrop of national political drama. Minutes before Congressman Meeks’ August 12 interview, President Trump announced the deployment of the National Guard to the nation’s capital and the federalization of the Washington Police Department. Meeks, referencing the move, remarked, “He’s looking at picking on mostly Democratic cities. Some of the things that he wants to do? Forget the Constitution, forget the rule of law, forget what judges say.”
As November approaches, New Yorkers face a mayoral race with more choices—and more uncertainty—than any in living memory. Voters will have to weigh bold promises, checkered pasts, and the shifting allegiances of the city’s political elite before deciding who will lead the nation’s largest city into its next chapter.
