New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) asserted on Sunday that he was “going nowhere” despite growing calls within his party to resign after being embroiled in a bribery probe.
“And I want you to be clear — you’re going to hear so many rumors and so many things, you’re going to read so much. I am going nowhere. Nowhere,” Adams said, addressing congregants at Maranatha Baptist Church in Queens Village, according to video shared through the mayor on his X page.
“I’m the second Black mayor in the history of the city. But God has fortified me. And no matter what you read, no matter what you hear, they want to fight me,” Adams said. “I’m going to fight for you.”
Adams is gearing up for a challenging reelection bid this year, with the Democratic primary scheduled for June 24 and the general election this November.
The New York Democrat faces charges of conspiracy, wire fraud and soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals, among other counts and prosecutors allege that he “sought and accepted improper valuable benefits, such as luxury international travel, including from wealthy foreign businesspeople and at least one Turkish government official seeking to gain influence over him.”
Adams has denied any wrongdoing and cast the investigation as being politically motivated.
The New York Democrat has sought a closer relationship with President Trump in more recent months, including meeting with Trump ahead of his inauguration and also attending Trump’s actual inauguration.
Earlier this month, a top Justice Department official moved to dismiss the charges against Adams, notably not weighing the merits of the case but saying it was interfering with his 2025 mayoral bid and that it was inhibiting his ability to tackle “the illegal immigration and violent crime that has escalated under the policies of the prior Administration.”
Danielle Sassoon, the acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, later resigned following the move, along with several others.
Sasson had alleged in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, which was obtained by The Hill, that “Adams’s attorneys repeatedly urged what amounted to a quid pro quo, indicating that Adams would be in a position to assist with the Department’s enforcement priorities only if the indictment were dismissed,” in reference to the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement.
Adams, however, has denied the idea that he sought a quid pro quo during an appearance with “border czar” Tom Homan on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” last week.
“Think about my attorney, Alex Spiro, one of the top trial attorneys in the country. Imagine him going inside saying that the only way Mayor Adams is going to assist in immigration, which I was calling for since 2022, is if you drop the charges,” he said. “That’s quid pro quo. That’s a crime.”
