‘Get Out’: Adams Urges Cuomo Not to Play Spoiler in NYC Mayoral Race, Woos Jewish Voters

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has a blunt message for former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo: “Get out.” 

In an interview released Monday by The Free Press, Adams urged Cuomo to exit the New York City mayoral race and clear the way for him him to prevail in November by unifying the opposition to controversial Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani.

“That’s the right thing to do for the city of New York,” said Adams during a conversation filmed at Gracie Mansion.

Although still a registered Democrat, Adams is running for reelection in November as an independent against the Democrats’ Mamdani, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, and potentially Cuomo, who for now remains formally in the race as an independent candidate despite losing to Mamdani last month in the Democratic primary.

Mamdani, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and an outspoken critic of US support for Israel, has built his campaign around challenging what he calls the Democratic Party’s brand of establishment politics. His vocal criticism of Israel’s military actions in Gaza and support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement have earned him both national attention and fierce backlash.

Adams, one of the most pro-Israel mayors in the country, has cast the progressive firebrand as dangerously out of step with mainstream Democrats. Without naming him directly in the interview, Adams painted a stark picture of ideological contrast, describing Mamdani’s worldview as extreme and divisive.

“We want to get safer, but when you look at someone like the candidate for mayor [who] wants to empty out Rikers Island, wants to defund police departments, the desire of believing we should not go after those who are repeated offenders and shoplifting, that is going to take us back,” Adams said. 

Mamdani, a State Assembly member from Queens and the son of prominent leftist intellectual Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair, has long aligned himself with anti-imperialist causes and Global South solidarity movements. While he has not directly responded to Adams’ latest remarks, he has previously accused the mayor of fear-mongering and failing to address the suffering of Palestinians.

New York City has a significant Jewish population, a key factor in Adams’s political calculus. Mamdani’s harsh critiques of Israel could prove polarizing among voters, particularly in more moderate or older blocs. As a result, Adams has made overtures to the Jewish community in an attempt to consolidate support of a critical voting bloc ahead of the general election.

“When you have the small population of Jewish residents [making up] 51 percent of the hate crimes [victims] in this city, that’s problematic,” Adams said. “So we started in office to end antisemitism. We signed the IHRA agreement, which standardized what antisemitism is.”

As mayor, Adams signed Executive Order 52 on June 8, 2025, formally adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism.

The definition characterizes antisemitism as “a certain perception of Jews … expressed as hatred toward Jews” and lists 11 illustrative examples, such as Holocaust denial, collective Jewish responsibility, and denying Jews’ right to self-determination. Adams’s order directs all city agencies to apply this definition to identify and address antisemitic incidents, without infringing on First Amendment protections.

Adding another layer of uncertainty to the general election race is the potential impact of Cuomo, who has floated a return to the campaign trail in recent months. Cuomo, also a staunch supporter of Israel during his tenure as governor, could divide pro-Israel voters and complicate Adams’s path to victory.

In the interview, Adams didn’t mince words about Cuomo’s potential spoiler role in November. He emphasized that Cuomo had already lost against Mamdani and that the former governor should gracefully bow out of the competition and let a stronger opponent combat the ascendant socialist.

The race, still months away from formal filing deadlines, is already emerging as a proxy battle over Israel, the direction of US foreign policy, and the growing rift between the Democratic establishment and its insurgent left wing.

In recent weeks, Adams has held events with Jewish community leaders and appeared on local radio stations emphasizing his unwavering support for Israel. His campaign advisers believe the contrast with Mamdani will be a central line of attack.

The post ‘Get Out’: Adams Urges Cuomo Not to Play Spoiler in NYC Mayoral Race, Woos Jewish Voters first appeared on Algemeiner.com.