Adams Wins Tumultuous Mayoral Election with a Mandate for Change
Tuesday, November 2, 2021, marked the end of a heated race for New York City mayor between Democrat Eric Adams, the Brooklyn Borough President, and Republican Curtis Sliwa, the founder of Guardian Angels NYC, a nonprofit organization of unarmed volunteers who patrol the streets and subways to protect their fellow New Yorkers from crime. The Associated Press called the race for Adams 11 minutes after polls closed at nine p.m. With 78.2% of precincts reported, Adams had amassed a lead of over 380,000 votes to become New York Cityís second Black mayor.
In his victory speech later that evening, Adams called for political unity, declaring that he hopes “to create a perfect city where no one is left behind.” He promised to thank the blue-collar workers that were the backbone of his coalition by speaking up for police officers and firefighters, among other public officials. This positive message reflected a change in tone from the fiery rhetoric used by both candidates in the final stages of their campaigns. Appealing to the city’s liberals, Adams accused Sliwa of being too close to former President Donald Trump. Sliwa utilized a similar tactic by criticizing Adamsís connections to outgoing Mayor Bill de Blasio, given his low approval ratings.
In the campaign, Adams engaged in a difficult balancing act: he was supported by both progressives like de Blasio and moderates like former mayor Michael Bloomberg. In addition, Adams received early endorsements from labor unions and wealthy donors, amassing a war chest of over 7.7 million dollars for a non-competitive, off-year race. Adams heavily led Sliwa in public polling by almost 40%. Though unsuccessful, Sliwa attempted to improve his numbers by highlighting his opposition to the “Defund the Police” movement as well as his support for lowering property taxes and abolishing tax exemptions for endowment-rich universities like New York University and Columbia University.
In contrast to the National Democratic Party’s move to the left, the mayor-elect ran to the right of de Blasio on many issues. A former police officer, Adams highlighted gun violence in his campaign in the context of his tough-on-crime stances. He promised that, as mayor, he would revisit New York’s controversial bail reform law that abolished cash bail for most crimes and misdemeanors. After the bail reform law was passed, crime rates increased, encouraging Adams’s desire to give judges more discretion to deal with repeat offenders as well as those caught with illegal firearms. Adams also intends to establish a new plainclothes New York police anti-gun unit. This means that these police officers will dress in civilian clothes while on duty, angering leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement. Hawk Newsome, a co-founder of the Greater New York Chapter of Black Lives Matter, threatened riots in response to this proposed policy, which Adams described as “silly.”
Adams also wants to part ways with his predecessor on education issues. In contrast to de Blasio’s plan to phase out the NYC Gifted and Talented Program, Adams emphasized his support for these advanced classes and promises to further expand educational opportunities for gifted students in low-income and minority communities. On a similar note, while de Blasio has clashed with Success Academy, a large network of charter schools, Adams has expressed support for these educational opportunities. Towing a fine line on charter schooling, Adams has expressed support for the city’s cap on charter schools, but has also said that he wants to duplicate successful charter schools. Adams gained the support and financial backing of hedge-fund managers Kenneth Griffin and Daniel Loeb, who are both prominent supporters of school choice.
During de Blasio’s tenure, he and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had a rocky relationship, as they disagreed about seemingly minor issues such as who had the responsibility to control Staten Islandís deer population. Thankfully, with recent turnover in both the mayor and governorís offices, Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor-elect Adams have vowed to work together, particularly on pandemic-related tasks like distributing federal rental assistance funds to renters and landlords. Time will tell if Adams fulfills his promise to steer the city in a new direction by tackling crime, homelessness, economic recovery, and education issues.
