New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary is heading toward an uncertain finish when voters go to the polls Tuesday as the field’s top tier jockeys …
New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary is heading toward an uncertain finish when voters go to the polls Tuesday as the field’s top tier jockeys for position in the final stretch. The leading Democratic contenders include Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, former New York City Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia and former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, three centrists, and civil rights lawyer Maya Wiley, who is backed by many progressive lawmakers and advocacy groups. Polls show that while Adams leads the crop, the race remains up for grabs for any of the four top contenders. Here are five things to watch as voting starts. Can progressives clinch a late victory at the polls? Adams, Garcia and Yang have been mainstays at the top of the few public surveys that have been released, but Wiley has enjoyed a surge in the polls in recent weeks as progressives coalesce around her bid. Wiley spent months fighting to lead the progressive lane in the primary against other contenders like New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer and former nonprofit executive Dianne Morales. However, she began consolidating support from liberals in the city after Stringer’s campaign was derailed by sexual misconduct claims from two women and Morales’s bid suffered from internal dysfunction over a unionization push. Wiley has won the endorsements of prominent lawmakers such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and groups including the New York Working Families Party, Democracy for America and EMILY’s List. That boost has led to a rise in the polls, with surveys consistently putting her in the top four, including a poll from PIX11/NewsNation/Emerson College released Thursday showing her in second place behind Adams. Despite the surge, progressives are anxious over whether she has had enough runway to ride out her campaign peak given the looming primary date. Do concerns over crime dominate the race? A rise in violent crime in New York City has taken center stage in the primary, with the top four contenders touting their policies regarding law enforcement to gin up support among their respective bases. Adams, Garcia and Yang have all portrayed themselves as allies of police, saying law enforcement would be critical in combating the rise in crime while also facing reforms. All three have advocated for a rise in the number of cops on the streets, including in the city’s subways.
