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By: Hadassa Kalatizadeh
The November 2025 New York City Mayoral election may turn out to be a heated one. Several high profile figures have indicated their interest in running against Mayor Eric Adams in the upcoming election. As reported by the NY Times, potential Democratic primary challengers include former city comptroller Scott Stringer, and Zellnor Myrie, a state senator from Brooklyn. Also, former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and state senator from Queens, Jessica Ramos, are also mulling entry into the race. The most potent potential contender, however, would be Brad Lander, the current city comptroller. His entry into the race would prompt another exciting election —for the position of city comptroller.
Mr. Lander, who has been a strong critic of Mayor Adams, said recently that he was “thinking really seriously” about running for mayor. Mr. Lander’s run for mayor would leave a vacancy for city comptroller, and there has already been strong interest from others who have already said they would run for city comptroller. Manhattan borough president Mark Levine, has said he is likely to run, and so has Antonio Reynoso, the Brooklyn borough president, per multiple sources for the NY Times. Also, another Democrat, Jenifer Rajkumar, a state assemblywoman from Queens announced over the weekend that she was planning to run for comptroller. Rajkumar, who is often at Mr. Adams’s side, is known as one of the Mayor’s closest political allies.
“This is unprecedented — to have this many people expected to run for various positions in a year when the mayor is running for re-election,” said Chris Coffey, a Democratic strategist. “If you look at the cascading effects and ramifications for several races, this hasn’t happened since term limits were created.”
Mr. Lander, the left-leaning former City Council member, has been an outspoken critic of the mayor—in particular bashing his handling of the migrant crisis as well as the mayor’s notorious budget cuts. Mr. Lander has said in a recent radio interview on WNYC that New Yorkers are worried about the budget cuts to libraries and expect better management of the city. “I love this city,” Mr. Lander said. “I love serving the people of this city. As I talk to them, they’re anxious about the city’s future and about its leadership.”
The mayor has pushed back, making fun of Mr. Lander’s voice and calling him the “loudest person in the city.” As the second ever black city mayor, his reelection is also marred with a looming federal investigation into his campaign fund-raising.
As for the city comptroller position, Ms. Rajkumar, 41, announced on Saturday that she was opening an exploratory committee to run for the spot. In her role in the Assembly, where she took office in 2021, she has focused on cracking down on illegal cannabis shops and making Diwali a school holiday, as a proud Indian American.
To further complicate the election year, if Mr. Levine and Mr. Reynoso, another former city councilman who led the body’s progressive caucus, do run for comptroller, their seats for Manhattan borough president and Brooklyn borough president would also be up for grabs.
