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Gov. Hochul says she won't remove NYC Mayor Adams from office
By
Jon Campbell
Published Feb 20, 2025
Modified Feb 20, 2025
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Susan Watts/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul
By
Jon Campbell
Published Feb 20, 2025
Modified Feb 20, 2025
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Gov. Kathy Hochul will not remove embattled New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office, saying his fate should be left to the voters to decide at the ballot box.
Hochul, a Democrat, announced Thursday that she will not invoke her authority under state and city law to force Adams out at this time, confirming what sources familiar with her decision told Gothamist earlier in the day.
At a news conference in her Midtown office, Hochul said unilaterally removing Adams would fly in the face of democratic principles, even as she continued to express concern over the Trump administration’s push to dismiss the mayor’s criminal charges while leaning on him for cooperation with the Republican president’s immigration crackdown.
“ My strong belief is that the will of the voters and the supremacy and sanctity of democratic elections preclude me from any other action,” Hochul said as she announced her decision. “I cannot deny the people of this great city the power to make this decision for themselves.”
The mayor is up for re-election this year, facing a crowded field of challengers in the June 24 Democratic primary.
Still, Hochul said Adams’ actions required a response.
Instead of removal, the governor said she will unveil new state and city bills that would increase oversight of the mayor’s office.
That includes creating a new state deputy inspector general with broad authority to watch over the city’s dealings, as well as giving other city officials more authority to sue the Trump administration over government actions without the approval of the mayor’s office. Hochul said she also wants to increase funding for the deputy state comptroller with oversight of New York City’s finances.
Those measures, if approved by the state Legislature and City Council, would apply through the end of this year and be “subject to renewal,” Hochul said.
NY1 first reported Hochul is considering new legal limits on the mayor’s power.
In a statement, Adams said there is “no legal basis” for limiting his authority.
“I have told the governor, as we have done in the past, that I am willing to work with her to ensure faith in our government is strong,” Adams said. “I look forward to continuing those conversations.”
The governor’s announcement marked the latest in what has been a tumultuous period at City Hall and the state Capitol, where the U.S. Department of Justice’s push to drop Adams’ charges has spurred a growing chorus of city and state officials calling for his resignation.
Adams has refused to resign since he was indicted in September, when prosecutors accused him of trading lavish travel perks and illicit campaign contributions from Turkish nationals in exchange for favors within city government.
That pressure increased earlier this month when Trump’s Department of Justice ordered prosecutors to drop the case, arguing that it interfered with Adams’ ability to carry out immigration enforcement. Four of Adams’ deputies and a handful of federal prosecutors announced their resignations, including acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon.
Sassoon and Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagan Scotten, the lead prosecutor on Adams’ case, accused the mayor’s attorneys of engaging in a quid pro quo with Trump officials. Adams and federal officials have denied the allegations, despite public displays of an alliance like the mayor’s TV appearance with Trump "border czar" Tom Homan last week. During the appearance, Homan openly reminded Adams to support the administration’s immigration agenda with an allusion to their “agreement.”
The series of events startled Democratic politicians in New York, spurring mounting calls for Adams to resign or for Hochul to use her authority under state and city law to remove him from office.
Hochul had long expressed concern about her power, calling it antidemocratic as recently as earlier this month. She appeared to reconsider her stance after Sassoon’s allegation became public and the mayor’s deputies resigned, holding a series of one-on-one meetings on Wednesday to discuss the mayor’s fate with New York City officials and leaders.
But she ultimately stuck to her original stance, instead opting for the series of oversight measures she’s hoping state and city lawmakers will pass.
Whether lawmakers go along with them remains to be seen.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) was noncommittal, saying that “As with all legislation, we will review with the conference.”
Assemblymember Amanda Septimo, a Democrat from the Bronx, said Thursday that she still wanted to see Adams out of office.
“I would like to see the governor embrace the power to rescue New York City from the leadership crisis of this moment,” she told Gothamist. “It’s just an untenable situation, and I think the right thing is for Mayor Adams to step aside and put the interests of the city before other interests.”
But she expressed more caution about the oversight plan.
“I’d be interested to hear why the state needs to exert that kind of power over a local government,” Septimo said. “We’re sort of contorting ourselves to work in this hellscape that Eric Adams has created, when really we should just be focusing on good government.”
The criminal bribery and fraud charges against Adams remain pending. U.S. District Judge Dale Ho reserved judgment on the matter after he held a hearing on Wednesday, promising that he would render his decision soon.
This story has been updated with additional information.
Jimmy Vielkind and Charles Lane contributed reporting.
Tagged
new york state
Adams investigations
new york city
Kathy Hochul
Politics
eric adams
Jon Campbell
Jon Campbell covers the New York State Capitol for WNYC and Gothamist. Prior to that, he covered the Capitol for more than a decade for the USA TODAY Network. He has twice earned the Walter T. Brown Memorial Award, an honor given annually by the Legislative Correspondents Association alumni for outstanding state government coverage. Jon grew up in the Buffalo area and graduated from the University at Albany. Got a tip? Email Jon at [email protected] or Signal at JonCampbellNY.90.
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