Billionaire investor Bill Ackman has shifted gears just a week after announcing his willingness to contribute “hundreds of millions of dollars” to support an alternative to New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani. Late Thursday night, Ackman declared that current Mayor Eric Adams is best positioned to defeat Mamdani in the upcoming race and suggested that Andrew Cuomo should exit the contest.
In a series of posts on X, Ackman revealed that he sat down for separate one-hour meetings on Wednesday with both Adams and Cuomo. He came away convinced that Adams stands the best chance of winning and that Cuomo’s continued presence in the race would hinder that. “My takeaway is that Adams can win the upcoming election and that the Governor should step aside to maximize Adams’ probability of success,” he wrote.
Ackman expressed respect for Cuomo and acknowledged the former governor’s service to New York. However, he felt that Cuomo lacked the passion and vigor needed to wage a tough campaign against Mamdani. “It is abundantly clear in his body language, his subdued energy, and his proposals to beat Mamdani, that he is not up for the fight,” Ackman wrote.
In contrast, he portrayed Adams as full of determination and energy, ready to take on the challenge directly. He praised the mayor’s willingness to confront Mamdani’s radical positions. Adams, a onetime NYPD officer, is “ready to go to battle, guns blazing with enormous energy and clarity on why Mamdani and his socialist/communist (‘We must seize the means of production’) and anti-NYPD policies would be catastrophic for NYC,” Ackman said.
He also lauded Adams’ campaign abilities, describing him as someone who can galvanize support from everyday New Yorkers. While admitting that Adams’ first term had its blemishes, he still found it commendable overall. “He relied too much on friends of Adams to staff his administration; however, when one looks at his record in totality, he has had a strong first term,” Ackman noted.
Ackman pointed out that Mamdani’s far-left platform has had an unexpected effect: it’s motivated numerous skilled professionals to back Adams. He claimed the mayor is attracting “many of our talented citizens with relevant experience” and is dedicated to recruiting the “best and brightest” to help steer both his campaign and the city’s administration forward.
He also emphasized several of Adams’ achievements in public safety, economic growth, and everyday livability in the city. “Under the leadership of the Mayor and Police Commissioner Tisch, major crime is down by double-digit percentages this year,” Ackman stated. “Shootings are down to their lowest level in recorded City history, and murders are down to record lows we haven’t seen since the 1960s. Subway crime is also down by double-digit percentages this year.”
The rebound in employment since the pandemic was another point of pride. Ackman said the city has not only regained the one million jobs lost during the COVID-19 crisis but surpassed previous employment records, with more than 4.86 million residents now working.
He added that New York is experiencing an unprecedented boom in small business growth. “NYC now has a record number of small businesses — more than 183,000 — with 20 percent of those opening during this administration,” he said. Ackman warned, though, that this upward trend could be reversed under Mamdani’s leadership.
Affordability was also part of Adams’ record, Ackman said, noting that the mayor has made significant strides to ease financial pressure on working families. “429,600 of whom had their city income taxes eliminated, and another 152,500 whose taxes were reduced,” he said.
Ackman also praised Adams for preserving critical social support systems. He highlighted the protection of the child care voucher program and the creation of a special 1,500-member NYPD unit dedicated to addressing quality-of-life issues, a move that he said has already yielded “excellent results” and has since been expanded across the city.
He noted that the latest city budget has allocated increased resources for arts, culture, and libraries, as well as initiatives to keep public spaces clean and inviting.
Ackman ended his post with a personal endorsement of Adams’ authenticity, contrasting him with his political rival. “Adams is also always authentically himself — his smile is real unlike the other guy’s — and in my experience, the more authentic candidate always wins.”
{Matzav.com}