October 21, 2025

FOX 5: Oct. 21 NYC election update: Sliwa staying in the race despite mounting pressure

By Michael Stallone , Isabel Soisson , Adeja Shivonne and Alex Meier

Sliwa staying in NYC mayoral race: ‘I’m not dropping out’

The New York City mayoral candidates are preparing for the second debate of the general election race on Wednesday. It comes as a new poll reveals a much closer race if Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa drops out. FOX 5 NY’s Robert Moses has the latest details.

The Brief

- Pressure is building in some corners of the NYC political sphere for Curtis Sliwa to drop out of the New York City mayoral race.
- It comes as a new poll reveals a much closer race in a one-on-one matchup between Mamdani and Cuomo.
- Election Day in New York City is just 14 days away.

The latest

Pressure builds for Sliwa to drop out

Billionaire John Catsimatidis, the CEO of WABC Radio, where Sliwa worked before running, called on him to drop out so he doesn’t “inadvertently help another candidate.” Sliwa, again, said he’s not going anywhere.

What they’re saying:

“I’m not dropping out,” Sliwa said. “I have support. I have 11 headquarters. I have volunteers everywhere, signs galore. I don’t see any Cuomo signs.”

The other side:

Monday night at a synagogue on the Upper West Side, Cuomo called Mamdani antisemitic and argued his case anew that Sliwa needs to drop out.

“He is not a viable candidate to win, he knows that, but he is a viable candidate to make Mamdani a winner,” Cuomo said. “I am hopeful that before the end of the day, he realizes that there’s something bigger at stake than his notoriety.”

Meanwhile, Mamdani painted Cuomo’s pressure campaign on Sliwa as a major indictment of the former governor’s campaign.

“Andrew Cuomo is spending more time pleading with another candidate to drop out than making his case to New Yorkers as to why he would be the next mayor, and the reason for that is he doesn’t have much of an agenda to share with New Yorkers across the five boroughs,” Mamdani said. “Whether it’s Curtis Sliwa and Andrew Cuomo running against me on November 4 or it’s just Andrew Cuomo, the result’s going to be the same. We’re going to win.”

Cuomo touts new poll

Meanwhile, Cuomo’s team is touting a new poll that they say shows Mamdani and Cuomo “in a dead heat,” with the Queens assemblyman polling at 45% and the former governor at 41%, within the margin of error.

“As New Yorkers see this reality, they’ll discard the spoiler Curtis Sliwa and rally behind Cuomo to save the city,” Cuomo’s campaign said in a statement.

The Gotham/AARP poll, however, only shows these tighter margins if Sliwa were to exit the race.

“In a head-to-head scenario between Mamdani and Cuomo, Mamdani leads 44.6% to 40.7%, with nearly 15% undecided — a group dominated by voters 50-plus. Cuomo’s support among these older voters has increased nine points since August, signaling growing competitiveness in a possible one-on-one race. If Cuomo were to drop out instead, Sliwa’s support would jump ten points from August, reaching 31.5%,” AARP said in a statement.

When is Election Day in NYC?

What’s next:

Election Day 2025 is Tuesday, Nov. 4, 14 days away.

Timeline, key dates

Wednesday, Oct. 22: The second mayoral debate.
Saturday, Oct. 25: Application for voter registration must be received no later than Oct. 25.
Saturday, Oct. 25 through Sunday, Nov. 2: The early voting period. Early voting hours vary.
Tuesday, Nov. 4: Election Day. Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Who’s ahead? Polls in the NYC mayor’s race

By the numbers:

Here’s a look at some of the latest polls in the race for NYC mayor:

A newly released report by Gotham Polling and the city AARP found 44.6% of New Yorkers would vote for Mamdani if Sliwa quit the race, compared to 40.7% saying they’d back Cuomo – with a margin of error of 4 points that puts Cuomo within striking distance.
The latest Fox News poll shows Mamdani with a 24-point lead among registered voters in New York City. He’s at 52% support among likely voters, while Cuomo polls at 28% and Sliwa polls at 13%.
Quinnipiac University has Mamdani with a 13-point lead in its latest poll, with Mamdani at 46% of the vote, while Cuomo and Sliwa poll at 33% and 15%, respectively.

Betting odds

Some companies have begun taking what amounts to bets on the outcome of the NYC mayoral election.

Polymarket: As of Monday, Mamdani has a 93% chance of winning the election.
Kalshi: The latest odds from Kalshi have Mamdani at a 91% chance of winning.
Oddschecker: Mamdani is at -2000 to win.