Editor’s note: NYT Editorial Board, who exactly is ‘disappointed’ by this mayoral field?

The New York Times Editorial Board, in its late and muddled nonendorsement, characterized the New York City Democratic mayoral primary field this way: “Eleven candidates are competing for the Democratic nomination, and many New Yorkers are understandably disappointed by the field. It lacks any candidate who seems likely to be the city’s next great mayor.”

I’d like to ask the board: What more do you want? In this field New Yorkers are supposedly “disappointed” with, we’ve got – in no particular order – the sitting comptroller, who previously served two terms in the City Council. We have the former comptroller, who spent almost three decades in office as Manhattan borough president, an Assembly member and as the city’s accountant. We have the sitting speaker of the New York City Council, who has had a front-row seat to the city’s budget negotiations over the past three years and probably knows that process as well as our current mayor. Also running is the literal former governor, who spent more than a decade running the state, a tenure marred by corruption scandals and allegations of abuse, yes, but still full of major accomplishments. And for those concerned that the Democratic Party is not passing the torch to the next generation, we’ve got three young, talented and hardworking state lawmakers, who together have raised the minimum wage, secured life-saving debt relief for taxi drivers and allowed hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who served their time to have their criminal records permanently sealed. Even the moderate voters who want an outsider type have a charter school hedge fund guy to vote for.

Call me naive, but I’m not disappointed by this field. It’s dynamic, surprising and fascinating. In a ranked choice contest, I only wish a bigger portion of the field stood a chance. This group certainly holds up compared to the 2021 crew – and back then the seat was open. New Yorkers have already watched the debates and shown up to vote early in huge numbers. They’ve canvassed, made phone calls, donated and attended rallies. They’ve endorsed full, complicated slates. They’ve cheered these candidates on in parades and shaken hands with them on the street. If you follow these candidates, you’ll see that New Yorkers on the whole approach them with optimism and excitement, not with disappointment.