New York City’s mayoral candidates are making a final push Monday to get voters to the polls, as the race to lead America’s biggest city nears its finale.
Ahead of Election Day on Tuesday, Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa have all spent the race’s final stretch campaigning at a frenetic pace across the city’s five boroughs as they make their case to succeed outgoing Mayor Eric Adams.
Mayoral candidates and their policies
Zohran Mamdani (Democrat, Democratic Socialist)
Mamdani’s platform centers on affordability and social justice, advocating for significant public investment and wealth redistribution.
Housing & Affordability: Support freezing rent costs for tenants in rent-stabilized housing. Proposes building 200,000 new affordable housing units.
Transportation: Supports making all city buses fare-free. The estimated annual cost for this was analyzed at over $700 million. Pilot programs saw ridership increases of 30% on weekdays.
Economy & Labor: Calls for raising the city’s minimum wage to $30 per hour by 2030. Proposes creating city-owned grocery stores (one in each of the five boroughs) to buy and sell at wholesale prices to lower consumer costs. Supports levying higher taxes on corporations and individuals earning above $1 million annually to fund his initiatives (which would require state approval).
Public Safety: Proposes creating a civilian-led Department of Community Safety (DCS). The DCS would deploy dedicated mental health outreach workers to respond to incidents involving emotionally disturbed individuals, particularly in the subway, easing the burden on police officers. States he is not proposing to increase the size of the NYPD but would change existing officers’ responsibilities to prioritize violent crime.
Education & Social Services: Supports the provision of universal public childcare.
Cuomo, a former Governor, campaigns on his extensive executive experience and a centrist approach, often warning against the “unrealistic” progressive goals of his opponent, Mamdani. His focus is on stable leadership, economic revitalization, and practical improvements to city services.
Subway Safety: Focuses on getting homeless people and individuals with mental health issues out of the subway system through mental health partnerships and shelters. Pledges to end open-air drug markets and use by enforcing state laws that allow incapacitated people to be taken to treatment facilities. Aims to curb the overuse of sidewalk sheds (scaffolding) with legislation that limits the time it can remain in place.
Economic Development: Supports office-to-residential conversions for underused commercial properties and transforming business districts into 24/7 destinations. Focuses on expanding the city’s role in major infrastructure projects, prioritizing the outer boroughs (e.g., the Metro-North expansion creating four new transit hubs in the East Bronx). Plans to expand workforce training and apprenticeship programs to create pathways to economic mobility, particularly for jobs that don’t require a college degree.
Education: Pledges to secure state funding to implement the Reduced Class Size law so it is not an unfunded mandate. Guarantees a suitable 3-K slot to all families and plans to expand after-school programs. Aims to address the 35% chronic absenteeism rate in schools (over 50% in certain areas) and reduce teacher attrition through better working conditions.
Curtis Sliwa (Republican)
Sliwa’s campaign is a “law and order” platform, heavily prioritizing a dramatic expansion of police presence and a crackdown on “quality of life” crimes, appealing to voters concerned about crime and disorder.
Police Expansion: Vows to hire 7,000 more police officers to increase the size of the NYPD to at least 40,000. Pledges to reinstate the Anti-Crime Unit (disbanded under Mayor Bill de Blasio) and expand the Gang Unit. Proposes deploying more NYPD transit officers and “aggressively” enforcing fare evasion laws on all 453 subway stations.
Policing Reform: Vows to restore qualified immunity for officers, which New York City ended in 2021. Promises to repeal or reform laws that he argues inhibit effective policing, such as the Diaphragm Law and the How Many Stops Act.
Housing & Development: Opposes “overdevelopment” and the “City of Yes” zoning reforms, favoring local community power. Seeks to revive thousands of derelict rent-controlled apartments.
Social Issues: Would reinstate the NYPD Homeless Outreach Unit and pair officers with licensed mental health professionals. Maintains a strong focus on animal welfare (a perennial part of his platform).
