The next NYC mayoral primary debate is tonight. Here's what to watch for.
The second and final debate ahead of New York City's Democratic primary mayoral election is set for tonight.
There are 11 Democrats running in the race, and seven of them qualified to appear in Thursday's debate: Adrienne Adams, Andrew Cuomo, Brad Lander, Zohran Mamdani, Zellnor Myrie, Scott Stringer and Whitney Tilson.
Most polls heading into the debate have Cuomo as the clear frontrunner, but Mamdani, a socialist assemblyman from Queens, consistently places second and has gathered some additional momentum through the endorsement of prominent progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
With seven candidates on the debate stage, it's likely to be a raucous exchange.
Political experts believe it could be fiery, especially given what's been taking place with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and recent protests. Experts also say you may see more attacks from the candidates on incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, and that going after Cuomo, as we saw last week, may not work in their favor as it gives him more airtime.
The debate is being held at John Jay College and airs at 7 p.m. on Spectrum News NY1.
What to watch for in tonight's NYC mayoral debate
"I think the gloves are off. I think [former] Governor Cuomo's going to come in hard. He understands that the days of just sitting back and the Rose Garden strategy are over. He has to come out hard against Assemblyman Mamdani, and it happens now. It's now or never," said J.C. Polanco, assistant professor at the University of Mount Saint Vincent. "If he doesn't hit him hard on his inexperience, on some of his socialist positions, on his involvement with the Democratic Socialists of America and his antisemitic views - well, what is seen as antisemitic views, by some - he is going to be in potential trouble. So he understands, this is it."
"I think we're going to expect a slight change right now. I think you're going to see Adrienne Adams come out a lot more, a lot louder, a lot earlier and really get a lot more attention," political consultant O'Brien Murray said. "I think you're going to see more attacks on Eric Adams, too. I think the Democrats in this debate format right now realize going after Andrew Cuomo is not good for them, it gives too much airtime."
"I think what you're going to see is the natural fight against Andrew Cuomo, to try to bring him down," Polanco said. "But something has to happen with Scott Stringer. Something has to happen when he sees the light and he understands that a lot of his voters are Cuomo voters. And, similar to what Senator Ramos did in endorsing former Governor Cuomo, there may be an opportunity here for something very similar to happen."
What role will President Trump and ICE protests play?
"He's the big monster in the room in any of these primaries. He's going to be the piñata that night, right? They're going to talk about and him and his protests in Los Angeles, how are you going to go up against Donald Trump as he cuts from the New York City budget?" Polanco said.
But will people vote based on how strongly they think someone's going to be against Mr. Trump?
"I think the answer's going to be no. But the real answer is what they're going to see as a leader, for what the people are for in New York, and what they may mean. Will they be for something in New York that pushes back on President Trump or not? Because what they're doing right now in L.A. is really not good for them," Murray said. "It's escalated. What the Democrats have to show in this debate is that they can lead New York forward, and not be stuck in the bad, and get beyond 'Donald Trump is bad,' because they all say he's bad."
What role will ranked choice voting play in the debate?
"A tremendous amount, because in the last debate we saw the question 'Who will you rank number two?' and they all avoided it," Murray said.
Will not ranking Cuomo be effective as a strategy for those hoping to stop his momentum?
"If they're smart about it, not only will they get away from ranking him, they'll get away from speaking with him. Every time they utter his name, he got to speak. So [Adrienne] Adams should be taking shots either at Stringer or at Lander, and supporting Mamdani. Mamdani should take his shots at Stringer and Lander, and pull those votes. The two of them can rise to where you've got Mamdani and [Adrienne] Adams as numbers two and three in this race, if they do it right," Murray said.
"But the truth is this: The base of former Comptroller Stringer, the base of Speaker Adams are both natural voters for former Governor Andrew Cuomo. These are natural voters, these are moderate centrist Democrats that are naturally going to put Cuomo at number two," Polanco said.
