"New York's billionaires have been working to stop Zohran Mamdani from becoming mayor of New York, and their effort got an unexpected boost when sitting NYC mayor Eric Adams announced that he would drop out of the race. Now the field has narrowed to Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo, and Republican Curtis Sliwa. (In a fun twist that will surely not confuse voters, Adams's name will still appear on the ballot in November.) According to the Mamdani campaign- and political strategists-Adams dropping out changes nothing: The democratic socialist is still going to trounce the former governor in the general election, just like he did during the primaries. Yet wealthy New Yorkers are cheering the news-and seeing a path to victory for their candidate of choice (which, sorry to the Cat Daddy of New York politics, is not Curtis Sliwa)."
"Immediately following Adams's announcement, billionaire Bill Ackman-who originally backed Cuomo before switching to Adams before coming full circle earlier this month)-took to X to write: "Thank you @ericadamsfornyc for your service for our city and for stepping aside when the time was right! @CurtisSliwa, you should follow Eric's lead for the good of NYC." The hedge fund manager also retweeted a post from Andrew Cuomo declaring: "The choice @ericadamsfornyc made today was not an easy one, but I believe he is sincere in putting the well-being of New York City ahead of personal ambition. We face destructive extremist forces that would devastate our city through incompetence or ignorance, but it is not too late to stop them." Meanwhile, two senior aides to the ex-governor told CNN that the campaign believes Adams's departure will allow Cuomo to consolidate support from unions and Black supporters; the sources also told the outlet that "high-powered donors who could pitch in significant sums of money [are] also expected to help the Cuomo campaign.""
Billionaires and wealthy New Yorkers have been organizing to prevent Zohran Mamdani from winning the mayoralty, and Eric Adams's unexpected withdrawal is seen by donors as a strategic opening. The general-election field now includes Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo, and Republican Curtis Sliwa, with Adams's name remaining on the November ballot. Mamdani's campaign and allied strategists insist the exit will not alter the outcome and predict Mamdani will defeat Cuomo in the general election as he did in the primary. Prominent donors like Bill Ackman publicly praised Adams and signaled support for Cuomo, while Cuomo aides expect unions, Black voters, and high-dollar donors to consolidate behind the ex-governor.
Read at Vanity Fair
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