The Mayor’s race remains a wild ride

Dear New Yorkers,

The New York City Mayor’s race remains a wild ride. This week, in a sad attempt to come across like a real person, Andrew Cuomo mimicked my best ad from the primary campaign, and rode the Cyclone in Coney Island.

Stealing my ad is a little pathetic. But doing it without a Nathan’s hot-dog? Go back to Westchester! (He’ll always have Rye Playland.)

I had a little more sympathy for the video Cuomo did with his daughter. After all, I know what it feels like to have people tell you that your vertical videos are no good, and that you need to include the younger generation (you’ll have to forgive me for thinking the videos with Rosa and me were a lot better).

There’s nothing remotely funny, though, about Cuomo’s collaboration with Donald Trump.

Reporting over the past few days reveals that Donald Trump is trying to get Eric Adams out of the Mayor’s race. As one more move in their corrupt bargain, Trump is reported to have offered Adams to be ambassador to Saudi Arabia, in order to give Cuomo a better chance. Cuomo recently told a crowd of millionaires in the Hamptons (where he seems to have spent most of his summer) that he “feel[s] good about” Trump clearing the field for him.

Andrew Cuomo is Donald Trump’s candidate for Mayor. And Cuomo is happy about it – whistling along with the rank corruption and rapidly advancing authoritarianism of the Trump regime.

That should be far more than enough to end Cuomo’s campaign. Or, at the very least, to have every single Democrat supporting Zohran Mamdani.

So I was very pleased to see New York State Senator Liz Krueger, one of the most thoughtful elected officials around who supported me in the primary (and is, FWIW, also Jewish), endorse Zohran this week (joining Jerry Nadler, Ruth Messinger, me, and lots of others).

Unfortunately, too many other Democratic leaders still remain on the sidelines, even as Donald Trump tries to make Andrew Cuomo our Mayor at the same time as he sends federal troops to occupy America’s cities. With fall here, and less than two months until Election Day, it’s time for everyone to get off the fence.

It’s not only that we need a Mayor who is not beholden to Donald Trump. It’s also that we need a Mayor with a positive, hopeful vision for a more affordable city, where everyone belongs, and where municipal government works hard every day on behalf of New Yorkers. That’s what Zohran is offering. Not just resistance to Trump’s dark, zero-sum, authoritarianism – but a bright, inclusive, hopeful alternative to it.

Look, I ran for Mayor hoping to win. I worked hard, and I’m proud of the race we ran. But Zohran ran an inspiring campaign, put forward a clear message of affordability, built a strong team, and won. I was proud to cross-endorse him in the closing weeks, and help show that we can move away from the sour, selfish, ego-driven politics of the past, replacing it with one that’s about loving New York City.

Now it’s time for everyone who loves this city – who wants it to be more affordable, who wants a government of integrity where all New Yorkers belong, and who knows that Donald Trump is a threat to all those things – to help us get back on track.

Look: you don’t have to agree with everything Zohran proposes, or everything he’s ever said, to see very clearly that he’s the best candidate to do that.

Here are three things you can do right now to help:

• Join Zohran and me at The Mazals, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ) annual awards ceremony, next Wednesday, September 10 in Sunset Park. JFREJ is honoring Zohran and me for our partnership during the primary (and also M. Gessen and NYS Tenants Bloc). I’ll share more thoughts about how we address the “tense time in the Jewish family group chat” both at The Mazals and here in the weeks to come – I know it’s on a lot of your minds. It would mean a lot if you’d join us.

• Support Make the Road New York – their gala is Thursday, October 16 – and their critical work fighting unjust ICE abductions and deportations. I’ve been fighting alongside Make the Road for decades, so I’m thrilled to be honored at their gala (along with CHIRLA and Chase Strangio). Now, they’re at the forefront of the fight against lawless mass deportations. In response to a recent lawsuit brought by Make the Road, a federal judge blocked Trump’s expanded use of “expedited removal.” In other words: the courthouse abductions and deportations we’ve been protesting at 26 Federal Plaza are illegal, and must stop.

• Support Zohran’s campaign by volunteering for a weekly canvass or phonebank! When I started drafting this, I was going to ask you to contribute to Zohran’s campaign – but I’m pleased to report they’ve just hit the fundraising limit. So now, instead of your money, they’d love to have some of your time – canvassing, phone banking, and building the community of New Yorkers fighting for a more affordable future.

The 2025 race for Mayor has been a wild ride, and the whole world is watching. Hope and solidarity won in June. Now, we’ve got less than two months to ensure it happens again in November – and beyond.

In solidarity,

Brad

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