{"id":5062,"date":"2025-10-16T16:29:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-16T16:29:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/5062\/"},"modified":"2025-10-16T16:29:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T16:29:07","slug":"what-to-know-about-the-new-york-city-mayoral-debates-elections-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/5062\/","title":{"rendered":"What to know about the New York City mayoral debates | Elections News"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was a primary<\/a> that sent shock waves through the Democratic Party and captured nationwide attention in the United States.<\/p>\n

In June, democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani<\/a> bested his better-known rival, former New York state Governor\u00a0 Andrew Cuomo<\/a>, to secure the Democratic nomination to be New York City\u2019s next mayor.<\/p>\n

Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list<\/p>\n

Now, New York City is preparing for the final vote in its mayoral contest on November 4.<\/p>\n

But before voters head to the polls, they will have the chance to watch a series of two debates between the main candidates: Mamdani, Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa. The first airs on Thursday night.<\/p>\n

The stakes go beyond the question of who will govern the city. New York\u2019s mayoral contest has become a flashpoint about the future of the Democratic Party and the changing politics surrounding US support for Israel, among other issues.<\/p>\n

Learn about the debates, the candidates and what issues are likely to figure prominently in this brief explainer.<\/p>\n

When are the debates?<\/p>\n

There will be two debates held before the election, each of them set to include the three main candidates.<\/p>\n

The first is on October 16 at 7pm US Eastern Time (23:00 GMT) and will be hosted by local news outlet WNBC.<\/p>\n

The second will take place on October 22 at 7pm US Eastern Time (23:00) and will be hosted by Spectrum News NY1, another local news channel.<\/p>\n

How can I watch?<\/p>\n

In New York City, the mayoral debates will be broadcast live on local television chains including WNBC, Spectrum News NY1 and PIX11.<\/p>\n

For those outside the metropolitan area, the debates will be available live on the YouTube channels for those stations.<\/p>\n

You can find NY1\u2019s YouTube page here<\/a>, and WNBC\u2019s here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Who are the candidates?<\/p>\n

There are three main candidates in the race.<\/p>\n

Leading the field is Zohran Mamdani<\/a>, a democratic socialist and member of the New York State Assembly whose rapid rise has been interpreted as a sea change within the Democratic Party.<\/p>\n

In February, an Emerson College poll found Mamdani trailing the pack, with less than one percent support. But by the time the Democratic primary<\/a> arrived in June, the dark horse had become the frontrunner.<\/p>\n

He ultimately trounced his nearest rival, Andrew Cuomo<\/a>, with 56 percent of the primary vote, in a contest widely viewed as a bellwether in the strongly Democratic-leaning city.<\/p>\n

Cuomo, however, remains Mamdani\u2019s main competitor. After his loss in the primary, Cuomo announced he would continue his run as an independent in November\u2019s general election.<\/p>\n

Cuomo served as New York\u2019s governor from 2011 to 2021, but he ultimately resigned<\/a> amid numerous allegations of sexual harassment.<\/p>\n

Finally, representing the Republican Party in the election is Curtis Sliwa, a conservative anti-crime activist and regular fixture in the city\u2019s political scene. He previously ran for mayor in the 2021 race.<\/p>\n

What happened to the incumbent, Mayor Eric Adams?<\/p>\n

Mayor Eric Adams<\/a> had been among the contenders for this year\u2019s mayoral race. But in late September, he formally withdrew his bid.<\/p>\n

Adams had faced slumping poll numbers, and throughout his four years as mayor, he has been dogged by corruption scandals. One culminated with a federal investigation into allegations he had entered into a quid pro quo with the Turkish government.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was wrongfully charged because I fought for this city,\u201d Adams said in his withdrawal video. He blamed \u201cthe constant media speculation\u201d for having \u201cundermined\u201d his ability to raise election funds.<\/p>\n

Adams had also faced scrutiny about his increasingly close relationship with US President Donald Trump. He visited Trump\u2019s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in January, shortly before the Republican leader\u2019s inauguration.<\/p>\n

Weeks later, in February, Trump\u2019s Justice Department dropped its case against Adams. The mayor has since switched his party affiliation from Democrat to independent.<\/p>\n

What do polls say about the state of the race?<\/p>\n

Since Adams dropped out of the race, most recent polls have shown Cuomo gaining ground but trailing behind Mamdani by a substantial margin.<\/p>\n

A poll from Quinnipiac University on October 9 found Mamdani leading the field with 46 percent support, followed by Cuomo with 33 percent, and Sliwa with 15 percent.<\/p>\n

The figures for Mamdani and Sliwa were similar to those gathered from a Quinnipiac poll in September, which featured Adams on the ballot.<\/p>\n

Adams\u2019s decision to drop out appears to have primarily benefitted Cuomo: His poll number rose from 23 percent in September.<\/p>\n

Other polls show Mamdani with a lead that ranges from around 14 percent to 21 percent.<\/p>\n

Media reports have suggested that Adams\u2019s decision to exit the race may have been encouraged by Trump himself, in a bid to consolidate opposition to Mamdani.<\/p>\n

What has President Trump said about the race?<\/p>\n

Born in the borough of Queens, Trump has lifelong ties to New York City, and he has been vocal in his opposition to Mamdani\u2019s candidacy.<\/p>\n

Trump has threatened to withhold federal funds from New York should Mamdani win the election. He has also repeatedly branded Mamdani a communist, a false allegation.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u200aI think he\u2019s terrible,\u201d Trump said of Mamdani after his primary win. \u200a\u201dI think he\u2019s bad news, and I think I\u2019m gonna have a lot of fun with him, watching him, because he has to come right through this building to get his money.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI \u200athink the people in New York are crazy,\u201d Trump added. \u201cIf they go this route, I think they\u2019re crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

What issues will be discussed at Thursday\u2019s debate?<\/p>\n

While debate topics are not announced in advance, a range of local and national issues are likely to be discussed.<\/p>\n

One question in particular is looming over the city\u2019s election: How will the next mayor manage threats and intimidation from President Trump?<\/p>\n

The Republican leader has already deployed troops and federal immigration agents to Democrat-run cities across the country and slashed funds for areas he sees as politically unfriendly.<\/p>\n

The candidates may also be asked about their plans to address cost-of-living concerns, affordability and improvements to local transportation, three issues that have featured prominently in the mayoral race.<\/p>\n

Questions about Israel\u2019s war in Gaza, which has killed nearly 68,000 Palestinians, have also figured prominently in the race.<\/p>\n

Mamdani is an outspoken supporter of Palestinian rights<\/a> and has criticised Israel\u2019s war as a genocide, a position held by a large number of scholars and rights groups as well as a majority of Democratic voters.<\/p>\n

In July, just 8 percent of Democrats said they approved of Israel\u2019s military actions, according to a Gallup poll.<\/p>\n

Cuomo, for his part, is a strong supporter of Israel and previously volunteered his services for a group of legal professionals defending Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against accusations of war crimes.<\/p>\n

In recent months, however, the former governor has struck a more conciliatory tone, telling The New York Times in a September interview that the violence has been \u201chorrific\u201d. A delicate ceasefire has since taken hold in Gaza.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It was a primary that sent shock waves through the Democratic Party and captured nationwide attention in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5063,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[153,416,9,11,10,12,87,901,2272],"class_list":{"0":"post-5062","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-donald-trump","9":"tag-elections","10":"tag-new-york","11":"tag-new-york-headlines","12":"tag-new-york-news","13":"tag-news","14":"tag-politics","15":"tag-united-states","16":"tag-us-canada"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5062\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}