Eric Adams Elected as The Second Black Mayor of New York

New Yorkers have elected Democrat Eric Adams, a former New York Police Department captain, as the city’s second Black mayor in a landslide election that came as no surprise.

Bill de Blasio’s second term was tarnished by the effects of the pandemic, historic job losses, skyrocketing housing prices and rental rates, extreme income inequality, and a broken transportation system. Adams, who is currently the Brooklyn borough president and a former state senator, will take the reins moving forward.

Throughout the campaign, the 61-year-old positioned himself as the blue-collar mayor, winning support from homeowners in all five boroughs.

He campaigned on reducing gun violence, boosting public safety, and beefing up security at train and bus stations, as well as cutting the NYPD’s budget and relocating some jobs previously performed by police to civilians, which he claims could save the city $500 million per year. Following a troubling spike in shootings not seen since the 1990s, Adams says he wants to resurrect a contentious plainclothes anti-crime team that de Blasio disbanded just last year.

He is adamant about reducing overtime and supports requiring new officers to live in the five boroughs, as well as enticing current officers who live outside the city to return with various incentives.

Personal assaults and public name-calling dominated the last weeks of Adams’ campaign against GOP challenger Curtis Sliwa. Sliwa was constantly referred to by Adams as a “racist” and a “Mini-Me” of Donald Trump. Sliwa, on the other hand labeled the new mayor as elitists and Bill de Blasio 2.0.

Sliwa, 67, is a well-known figure in the city whose tenure was described by a former radio show colleague as the latest in a series of publicity stunts. He recently campaigned on a platform opposing vaccination mandates and critical race theory in public schools, raising Madison Square Garden property taxes, increasing the NYPD’s budget and footprint, and converting the mayor’s home into a cat and dog sanctuary.