If you’re in line to run for reelection, stay in line!

With rumors flying that his exit from the mayoral race was imminent, Eric Adams sought to project strength Friday, stridently declaring at a bait-and-switch press conference that he’s staying in the race amid reports that he’s being eyed for a job within the Trump administration. 

“There’s been so much speculation, indications, announcements of what I am doing no matter what I have stated over and over again publicly,” Adams said, delivering brief remarks at Gracie Mansion Friday afternoon. “I want to be clear with you. Andrew Cuomo is a snake and a liar. I am in this race and I am the only one that can beat Mamdani.”

Adams’ announcement, which comes roughly two months out from the November election, is just another twist in what’s been an unusually turbulent race. With anemic polling and his failure to receive public matching funds, Adams has been under increasing pressure to abandon his campaign ever since Cuomo launched an independent campaign in July –  a push tied to giving the former governor a better chance against Zohran Mamdani. Cuomo lost the ranked-choice Democratic primary to the democratic socialist upstart in June, trailing Mamdani by more than 12 points in the final round of voting. Though Cuomo quickly conceded, and initially seemed unlikely to continue his campaign, he rebranded and relaunched a few weeks later. A centerpiece of his independent campaign has been insistence that the anti-Mamdani candidates consolidate the field. In post-primary polls, Cuomo has consistently led those candidates: Adams, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, and until recently Jim Walden, an independent candidate who obtained public matching funds but failed to gain traction and dropped out of the race on Monday.

For months, the mayor has been insistent that he would stay in the race, touting a massive fundraising haul in the cycle immediately following the primary and exuding confidence about his ability to connect with New Yorkers. But this week, there was a shift in his certainty, spurred by several developments and news reports. On Tuesday, Adams visited Florida – a trip he insisted was personal, but that reportedly involved a meeting with Trump adviser Steven Witkoff. On Tuesday evening, Walden dropped his bid for mayor in a mostly symbolic gesture to show commitment to consolidating support behind the strongest candidate. Reports that Adams was being considered for a job in the Trump administration were published on Wednesday. More reports broke over the following two days, including that Trump’s advisers were putting together a plan to nominate Adams to be an ambassador or envoy position to Saudi Arabia. News of Friday’s press conference – which was announced roughly an hour before it was expected to begin – only further fueled speculation that the mayor was about to drop out of the race. 

Adams didn’t take any questions during the Friday press conference and spoke for only a few minutes. “The voters will determine the next mayor of New York City,” he said. And he made it clear who he believes to be the source of the frenzy to push him out: Cuomo.

“Andrew Cuomo has a career of pushing Black candidates out of races,” Adams said, referencing former Gov. David Paterson, former state Comptroller Carl McCall and Charlie King. 

Asked about Adams’ declaration that he’d be staying in the race, President Donald Trump said that the mayor is free to do as he wants. “It would seem to me that … if you have more than one candidate running against (Mamdani), it can’t be won. If you have one candidate, if he’s the right candidate, I would say that Cuomo might have a chance winning one on one,” Trump said. 

Adams could still exit the race over the next two months, though he'll have a hard time getting his name off the ballot if he does. The New York City Board of Elections certifies the ballot on Sept. 11, meaning he'd have to get his name removed before then. Even then, there are just a handful of exceptions where he’d even be permitted to do this: death of a candidate, becoming a resident of another state by Election Day, and running for a judgeship. And even if he were to drop out, Cuomo would remain the clear underdog compared to Mamdani. 

While he would have a better chance in a consolidated field – thus minimizing the chance of moderate and conservative voters splitting the anti-Mamdani vote – Sliwa has so far rejected calls to exit the race. It is also extremely difficult to beat a Democrat in a citywide election due to the massive voter enrollment advantage. With little exception, independent candidates don’t become mayor in New York City – certainly not without an enormous sum of money at their back. And after Cuomo’s lackluster performance in the primary, real estate and business leaders have yet to align behind him in the general with the same degree of fervor. Polling shows Mamdani in the lead. He’s also got a massive force of volunteers, just maxed out on fundraising, and has picked up a swell of support from unions, party bosses, and other establishment Democrats since his primary victory – many of whom backed Cuomo in the primary.