Eric Adams elected mayor, pledging to tackle crime and inequality
The former police captain and Brooklyn borough president won the race to lead the city as it emerged from the pandemic.
Eric Adams was elected mayor of New York on Tuesday, winning the race to lead the nation's largest city as it struggled to recover from the pandemic, and becoming only the second Black mayor in the city's history.
Adams, a former police captain who went on to serve as a state senator and as Brooklyn borough president, ran as a pragmatic Democrat who promised to restore public safety while addressing the inequality laid bare by the pandemic. A one-time critic of police misconduct from within the department, he cast himself as uniquely suited to balance safety and reform.
His victory, after a crowded and competitive Democratic primary decided by the city's new ranked-choice voting system, reflected the concerns of voters anxious about rising crime, a halting economic recovery and the quality of life in a battered city.
Adams promised to get New York "stuff done," pledging to revive the economy, improve the schools, build more affordable housing and make the streets and subways safer. He also brought a colourful personal style and a message that the city's working-class and outer-borough residents deserved a champion.
He inherited a daunting set of challenges: a fragile recovery, a strained budget, a homelessness crisis and deep divisions over policing. His election set the stage for a consequential term as the city sought to define what its future would look like after the upheaval of the previous two years.