Mamdani Tops NYC Mayoral Polls, Pushes Prostitution Reform

In June, the Democratic primary of the New York City mayoral race was won by young democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani.

After Mamdani secured his spot as the Democratic nominee, incumbent Mayor Eric Adams entered the race as an independent along with Andrew Cuomo, the former New York governor who Mamdani beat in the primary. The fourth major candidate in the mayoral race is Republican Curtis Sliwa, who ran for mayor in 2021.

As Election Day in November draws closer, the candidates are ramping up their campaigns. According to The New York Times, multiple polls have shown Mamdani is the front-runner in the race.

Here is a look at some recent updates on the mayoral race, including Cuomo and Adams’ attacks on Mamdani’s stance on legalizing prostitution and one of Adams’ advisers giving money to a reporter.

Cuomo, Adams attack Mamdani’s stance on decriminalizing prostitution

As he campaigns for mayor, Cuomo has increased his attacks against Mamdani, focusing on the 33-year-old’s stance on the issue of prostitution.

The former governor has argued that if Mamdani wins in November, “New York City would become prostitution capital of the country,” per Fox News.

This argument stems from when Mamdani called for the decriminalization of sex work during his run for the state Legislature in 2020. During his time as state assemblyman, Mamdani co-sponsored bills to decriminalize sex work across the state.

As he has campaigned for New York City mayor, Mamdani has rarely spoken out on the issue, per Fox News. On Sunday during a campaign event, Mamdani was asked about the criticism he has received from Cuomo and Adams over his stance on decriminalizing prostitution.

In response, the Democratic candidate said: “My focus on this campaign has long been to make this city one that every New Yorker can afford, where they are safe and where they live a life of dignity.”

During an unrelated event on Wednesday, Mamdani spoke on the issue again, saying he wants to mirror the policies of Bill de Blasio, per the New York Post. He added that he wants to look at how the previous administration handled the issue.

“I found that it created far more safety than what the current administration has done,” he told reporters, taking a swing at current mayor Adams, according to the New York Post.

At the end of his time in office in 2020, de Blasio proposed a number of reforms to decriminalize prostitution as a way to shift the focus of arrests on traffickers rather than sex workers.

Adams adviser suspended after giving cash to local reporter

Winnie Greco, a longtime ally, fundraiser and adviser for Adams was suspended from the reelection campaign after she tried to give a local reporter a potato chip bag stuffed with cash, per NBC News.

The City, a local news organization, outed Greco “for trying to give cash surreptitiously tucked inside a Herr’s Sour Cream & Onion ripple potato chip bag to one of its City Hall reporters after a campaign event Wednesday afternoon in Harlem,” according to NBC.

The reporter, Katie Honan, believed the chip bag to be a genuine snack offer and initially refused the potato chips, but Greco insisted.

According to NBC News, after she discovered the wad of cash, reportedly including at least one $100 bill and several $20 bills, she contacted Greco immediately to return the unwanted gift.

“I can’t take this, when can I give it back to you,” Honan texted Greco, but received no response.

After she was contacted by The City, Greco called the money offer a “mistake” and apologized profusely. Greco is Chinese and said the act was “a culture thing,” a position taken by her attorney in a statement.

“I can see how this looks strange,” Greco’s attorney, Steven Brill, said in a statement, per NBC News. “But I assure you that Winnie’s intent was purely innocent. In the Chinese culture, money is often given to others in a gesture of friendship and gratitude. Winnie is apologetic and embarrassed by any negative impression or confusion this may have caused.”

A look at recent polls

Multiple recent polls, conducted by a variety of organizations, show Mamdani ahead of Cuomo, Adams and Sliwa.

In a survey of 1,376 likely votes, the AARP New York-Gotham Polling & Analytics poll found Mamdani to have 41.8% support, well ahead of the nearest challenger, per CBS News.

In the same poll, Cuomo had 23.4% support, Sliwa received 16.5% and Adams had 8.8% support.

A poll of 638 likely voters from American Pulse Research, conducted between Aug. 14 and 19, also has Mamdani ahead with 37% of support, per The New York Times. In this poll, Cuomo is also second with 25%, followed by Sliwa with 17% and Adams with 11%.

A HarrisX poll conducted in early July surveyed 585 registered voters and also had Mamdani in the lead, but with a smaller margin than the other polls. In this poll, Mamdani led with 26% support, followed by Cuomo with 23%, Sliwa in third with 22% and Adams once again in fourth with 13%.