The mayor of New York City is rarely a popular figure, with each politician facing some level of controversy during their time in office: Rudy Giuliani for his general views on crime control, Michael Bloomberg with his stop-and-frisk policy and Bill DeBlasio for the misuse of campaign funds.

Eric Adams is a particularly unpopular figure within the New York political scene, known for misconduct, a known party-boy lifestyle and associating with people known for their troubled pasts, both in and out of his administration. His administration is particularly marred by his attraction to glamor, prestige and the evident desire to appear on the cutting edge of city government instead of focusing on real, tangible improvements to the city. The string of corruption allegations against him and his top aides, along with the multiple federal investigations against them, reinforces my belief that Adams is a grifter who took the office of mayor of New York City to further the careers of himself and his inner circle, instead of working to improve and enrich the lives of his constituents.

Generally, I have found the decisions that Adams has made during his time in office to be grossly miscalculated at best, such as his plan of integrating artificial intelligence within NYC’s government through a chatbot that spread disinformation. And actively harmful at worst, like his budget cuts to public libraries, schools and other public works totaling to over hundreds of millions of dollars. Although he eventually walked back on some budget cuts deemed “unnecessary” by the general public, his administration still left institutions like libraries flailing by using taxpayer resources on controversial and experimental ideas  while failing to follow through on any promises made to tangibly improve the city’s aging infrastructure. 

Poor policy decisions aside, it appears that the Adams administration is simply unable to operate without garnering attention for all the wrong reasons, as he and his top aides find themselves in the midst of four federal criminal investigations into various aspects of both City Hall operations and into Adams himself. 

Adams and  members of his administration have faced a string of federal investigations regarding his campaign funds and allegations of corruption, respectively. The most recent within the administration are the resignation of NYC Police Commissioner Edward Caban on Thursday, Sept. 12, and Chief Counsel Lisa Zornberg on Saturday, Sept. 14. Adams is also polling at the lowest levels of any mayor this century, with his approval rating being the “lowest job approval rating for a New York City mayor” since 1996 which is when Quinnipiac University first began measuring that data.

The recent streak of scandal surrounding the inner circle of his administration has once again emphasized the disconnect between Adams’ personal agenda and the role that he plays as mayor of New York City. The various controversies, coupled with his abrasive persona and lack of popularity with both the general public and within his own party, lead me to believe that he will most likely not make it through the 2025 Democratic Primary.

Although Adams defeated the Republican nominee Curtis Silwa with 67% of the vote in the 2021 general election, that feat is not particularly impressive based on the city’s political makeup. Notably, Adams’ victory within the primary party came at a much narrower margin. Adams only won his party’s nomination after eight rounds of ranked-choice voting, beating Kathryn Garcia, the former sanitation commissioner and current director of state operations, by less than 1%, which is hardly a wholehearted vote of confidence by the members of his party. 

There are multiple prominent candidates who have appeared and confirmed that they will be definitely challenging Adams for the democratic nomination, including New York City Comptroller Brad Lander along with New York State Senators Zellnor Myrie and Jessica Ramos. Many other potential candidates have been named, including former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. This isn’t particularly surprising, as Adams himself has mentioned a “coordinated effort” to make him a one-term mayor within his own party since 2023. However, Lander’s candidacy marks the first time that a citywide elected official ran against the incumbent mayor from the same party since 1989. Many of these candidates, including Lander, Myrie and Ramos lean left or outright identify as progressives, which might serve as a draw for younger, more liberal voters to participate in the primary election. 

Although we have no idea who will be the Republican candidate against Mayor Adams will be even if Silwa has announced his candidacy and desire for a rematch — they should not be a concern for those who are voting in 2025. Instead, if you are a voter who does not want to see Adams spend another four years in office, I implore you to research those who have announced their candidacy. He may consider himself to be “perfectly imperfect” in a city full of “perfectly imperfect people,” but primary voters shouldn’t settle for a candidate whose imperfections include allegations of assault and corruption,whose tenure in office is marked by a declining quality of life, frivolous projects and an overall sense of crisis. 

Damien Moshman, FCRH ’25, is a political science and journalism major from Princeton, N.J.