Trump accused of 'interfering' in New York City mayor's race

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(The Center Square) — President Donald Trump is again being accused of meddling in the New York City mayor's race with reports suggesting he is trying to clear the field for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to defeat Democratic socialist frontrunner Zohran Mamdani.

A report by the New York Times said intermediaries on behalf of Trump have approached incumbent Democratic Mayor Eric Adams' campaign with an offer for an administration position in exchange for him dropping his independent run for re-election. The newspaper also reported that Trump allies have extended a similar offer to Republican mayoral nominee Curtis Sliwa for dropping out of the race. 

The political calculus appears to be that Adams and Sliwa's exit from the race would allow former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to pick up their votes and defeat Mamdani, the frontrunner. 

Cuomo, who is running on the independent ticket, lost the Democratic primary to Mamdani and trails behind him by 20 points in the latest polls. 

When reporters asked him on Wednesday if he plans to drop out of the race, Adams downplayed the claims but didn't outright dismiss them. 

"If they did or didn't, my rule was the same from the first day I was elected," Adams said during a briefing. "I don't talk about private conversations. And so, you know that, many of you have private conversations with me that you never heard again. I am not going into private conversations. And no matter what happens right now, I'm the mayor of the City of New York."

Sliwa denied that he had been offered any Trump administration job in exchange for dropping out, saying he's "the only candidate on a major party line who can defeat Mamdani" and remains "committed to carrying this fight through to Election Day." 

"The people of New York City deserve a Mayor who will finally make the city work for the hard working people who power it," Sliwa posted on social media. "This is a distraction from the issues forcing New Yorkers to flee everyday." 

Cuomo has denied previous claims that he was communicating with the White House and his campaign didn't comment on the New York Times report about Trump's election meddling. He has attacked Mamdani for lacking political experience and pushing left-wing policies that would hurt the Democratic Party.

But Mamdani seized on the news, issuing a statement saying his campaign is not only running against other candidates on the ballot, but the "notion that New York City is for sale."

"Today we have learned what New Yorkers long suspected, Andrew Cuomo is Donald Trump's choice to be the next mayor of this city," Mamdani said. "This news is an affront to our democracy, an affront to what makes so many of us proud to be Americans — that we choose our own leaders." 

"We know that this city will decide its own future, and we know that it is New Yorkers that we will turn to to make that decision in November," he added. "Not the White House in Washington, D.C."