New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo said he doesn’t want President Trump involved in the mayor’s race following reports that he’s seeking to clear the field for the former governor.
Cuomo said during a press conference on Thursday that he doesn’t know if the New York Times report that Trump advisers have discussed offering current Mayor Eric Adams a job in the administration for him to drop out of the race is accurate, and he hasn’t spoken with Trump nor Adams about it. The report said the administration has also discussed making the same offer to Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, with the goal of giving Cuomo the best chance of defeating Zohran Mamdani in November.
Cuomo said he hasn’t sought Trump’s support and also wouldn’t accept it.
“I don’t want him involved in anything to do with my race,” Cuomo said, but he added that whether Adams or Sliwa choose to continue in the race is up to them.
A spokesperson for Adams told the Times that the mayor hadn’t spoken with the president about serving in a position in the administration, while Sliwa released a statement affirming that he hasn’t been in touch with the White House and wouldn’t accept a position, saying that his focus is on New York City.
Pressure has risen in recent weeks for opposition to Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, to coalesce behind a single candidate. Critics of Mamdani have been concerned that the anti-Mamdani vote could be split among the other candidates and allow the Democratic socialist to win.
