New York’s three mayoral candidates had a fiery debate Wednesday night in their latest televised face-off, less than two weeks before voters choose the city’s next leader on November 4.
Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani, independent Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa participated in a tense and often chaotic discussion. The current mayor, Eric Adams, who had withdrawn from the race a few weeks earlier, was once again not present.
“It’s us against them,” Sliwa said in his opening remarks, lumping Cuomo and Mamdani together despite their mutual disapproval.
Mamdani opened by accusing the two rivals of focusing more on pushing each other to give up than coming up with new ideas. Allies of the former governor have urged Sliwa to step down to shore up anti-Mamdani votes, although it is unclear how many conservatives would support Cuomo.
Cuomo claimed that Mamdani “doesn’t have any new ideas” and simply parroted former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s ideas, prompting Mamdani to hit back: “I have plans for our future, my opponents only have fear.” »
Starting with the topic of ICE raids in New York, Cuomo said federal immigration agents should not focus on quality of life offenses like street vending, calling them a police matter. He added that he would have personally called Donald Trump to rein in ICE.
Sliwa countered that, unlike Cuomo and Mamdani, he would “negotiate with Donald Trump and try to get the best deal possible.” Mamdani fired back, calling Cuomo a “puppet of Donald Trump.”
The two men then argued over which candidate Trump preferred. Cuomo claimed Trump wanted Mamdani elected so he could “come take over the city,” calling the progressive “Trump’s dream.”
The debate then turned to the city’s record 150,000 homeless students. Mamdani talked about plans to double down on a program that pairs shelter families with city employees for regular check-ins. Cuomo said “the homeless rate has more than doubled” since he left office, without clarifying his numbers.
Sliwa joked, “You didn’t leave. You fled to avoid indictment,” prompting one of the loudest rounds of applause of the evening.
Regarding housing, Mamdani said he would “freeze rents” but would also help landlords. Cuomo defended past rent increases as necessary and insisted Mamdani could not freeze rents because he does not control the city’s rent guidelines board.
“If you want a mayoral candidate who tells you everything he can’t do, then Andrew Cuomo is your choice,” Mamdani responded, specifying that the mayor appoints board members.
When the “Yes City” zoning reforms were introduced, Sliwa opposed them while Cuomo and Mamdani expressed conditional support. Pressed further, Mamdani said, “I have not yet taken a position on these ballot amendments. »
Questions about Mamdani’s support for New York Jews dominated the middle portion of the debate. Cuomo cited a letter from 650 rabbis saying Mamdani threatened “the safety and dignity of Jews in every city.” He accused the Muslim candidate of helping to “fan the flames of hatred against the Jewish people.”
Sliwa went further, saying Mamdani supports “global jihad.” Mamdani responded: “I have never, not once, spoken in favor of global jihad” and suggested that this attack was fabricated because he was the first Muslim about to rule the city.
He added that he would ensure the safety of Jewish children and develop a new public school curriculum on Jewish history “so that the children of this city will discover the beauty and breadth of the Jewish experience.”
All three candidates said they would retain Jessica Tisch, the city’s police commissioner.
Things heated up again between Cuomo and Mamdani almost halfway through the debate after the latter was questioned for being evasive or unclear about his ideology.
Mamdani initially said, “When it comes to our schools, I believe every child should benefit from an excellent public education. » He then mentioned funding for public schools and the need to improve literacy levels, but did not further explain his plan to overhaul schooling in New York. He changed the subject and specifically called out Cuomo for taking so long during his tenure as governor to create more housing.
Cuomo immediately fired back by noting that the governor doesn’t build housing, prompting Mamdani to interject: “Not if it’s you!” »
Things quickly escalated as the men spoke to each other in increasingly loud retorts. Cuomo, once again, cited Mamdani’s inexperience while Mamdani took aim at Cuomo for his shortcomings as governor.
“You don’t know how to run a government and you don’t know how to handle an emergency,” Cuomo told Mamdani at one point.
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After moderators asked him to keep order, Sliwa intervened and said his fellow candidates were “fighting like kids in the schoolyard.” Of Mamdani, Sliwa said, “Your resume could fit on a cocktail napkin,” while of Cuomo, he said, “Your failures could fill a public school library.” »
One of the moderators, Errol Louis, had to remind the candidates that “they know how it works,” warning them against talking among themselves.
Sliwa described her son’s experience with gang violence and said perpetrators received only a “slap on the wrist” under the Juvenile Act. Later, amid a discussion about the psychiatric hospital’s capacity, Cuomo joked that he would “save one for Sliwa.”
When asked if they would entertain a possible endorsement from Eric Adams, Cuomo said yes while Mamdani and Sliwa said no.
“Absolutely not – put this crook in jail!” » » said Sliwa.
During questioning of the candidates, Mamdani confronted Cuomo about the harassment allegations against the former governor, noting that accuser Charlotte Bennett was in the audience: “What do you say to the 13 women you sexually harassed?”
Cuomo rejected this claim, saying Mamdani was not “mature” and that the cases had been dropped, although litigation was still ongoing.
During the debate, one of Cuomo’s accusers — Lindsey Boylan — called out Cuomo on X and praised Mamdani for mentioning the allegations.
“I am one of those women. I was legally abused by Andrew Cuomo for years after being harassed as a member of his team. Now he wants to be mayor. Shame on you Cuomo and thank you (Mamdani) for speaking out against this injustice,” she wrote.
Speaking about Rikers Island, Sliwa and Cuomo opposed the mandatory closure in 2027 while Mamdani supported it, calling the prison a “stain on the history” of New York. Cuomo warned that closing it would “free 7,000 criminals into New York City.” Mamdani said Adams had made it “nearly impossible” to meet the deadline, but pledged to try.
The exchange again degenerated into quarrels. Cuomo has touted infrastructure projects such as the Second Avenue Subway and the Mario Cuomo Bridge to highlight his experience. Mamdani retorted: “Andrew Cuomo will tell you about his experience as if we don’t know it. We’ve had your experience! The problem is your experience!”
On wages, Mamdani said New York was becoming “a museum of where working-class people could live,” proposing to phase in a $30 minimum wage.
“Zohran Mamdani deals in fantasies, not reality,” Sliwa replied.
The candidates also clashed over Mamdani’s plan for free universal buses. Cuomo said it would “subsidize the rich.”
In a contentious debate full of bickering and banter, the evening ended rather predictably, with all three mayoral candidates declining to name a candidate they would like to see run for president in 2028.
New York City mayoral election day is Tuesday, November 4. Early voting begins October 25 and continues through November 2.
