Transcript: Mayor Adams Appears on WABC’s “Eyewitness News At 6:00”

July 7, 2025

Liz Cho: An interesting development today in the race for mayor of New York City. Former governor David Paterson is calling for leaders to come together to defeat Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani. Former governor Andrew Cuomo and incumbent mayor Eric Adams are on the ballot as independent candidates in the November election.  

Paterson worries that with Adams, Cuomo, and Republican Curtis Sliwa in the race, there is now an urgent need for strategic unity, as he calls it, so that Mamdani does not become the next mayor. Eyewitness News reporter N.J. Burkett is live at Gracie Mansion where he talked to Mayor Adams this afternoon. 

NJ Burkett: And right, Liz, what we have here is a standoff. Mayor Adams is defiant tonight, insisting that he will not drop out of the race, regardless of pressure from establishment politicians and certainly not after a phone call from Andrew Cuomo. 

He called you up, didn't he?  

Mayor Eric Adams: Yes, he did.  

Burkett: What did he say?  

Mayor Adams: That, you know, he believes he could win. “Can you step aside so that I could run?” Think about the arrogance of that. 

Burkett: Mayor Adams says he told off Andrew Cuomo after the former governor urged Adams to end his independent campaign for City Hall. 

Mayor Adams: He caved into the far left around bail reform, around all of these other entities, and now he's telling me that I should step aside for him. That's the highest level of arrogance I've ever witnessed. 

Burkett: Cuomo lost the Democratic primary last month by 12 points to Democratic Socialist Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. In a city that is overwhelmingly Democratic, the nominee would ordinarily be expected to win the general election. But Republicans and centrist Democrats are mobilizing to stop Mamdani.  

Former Governor David Paterson, who endorsed Cuomo, says someone should step aside rather than split the vote. Overall crime is trending lower and the economy is bouncing back. But Adams is polling in the single digits. Tonight, Cuomo's spokesman says Mamdani will win if Adams doesn't drop out.  

Mayor Adams did not run in the Democratic primary because he knew he was anathema to Democrats and unelectable. Nothing, he said, has changed. We do not see any path to victory for Mayor Adams. But the mayor insists that's wrong.  

You believe there is a path to victory for you even if Cuomo runs?  

Mayor Adams: Yes, I do.  

Burkett: Even if he campaigns? 

Mayor Adams: Even if he campaigns. Nine percent of the voters voted. Ninety-one percent have yet to speak. 2.5 million Democrats have not voted. A million independents have not voted. 700,000, 800,000 Republicans are yet to vote.  

Burkett: As for his phone call with the former governor, how did that phone call end? 

Mayor Adams: Run your race, governor.  

Burkett: So the phone call ended with you basically turning the tables on him and saying, no, I think you should drop out. 

Mayor Adams: I've said that over and over again, over and over again, that do the right thing for the people of this city and mobilize around one candidate so we can look at the extreme threat that we're having with Mamdani. 

Burkett: And the mayor says there is no poll result that could cause him to change his mind. As for Mamdani's campaign, they say he got the highest primary vote total in 36 years, a coalition they say is growing.  

###