Oct. 22 (UPI) — The three candidates vying to become New York City’s next mayor began debating at 7 p.m. EDT on Wednesday and are scheduled to continue for 90 minutes.
Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, 67, is running as an independent after Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, 34, defeated him in the city’s Democratic Party primary earlier this year.
Also debating is Guardian Angels founder and radio show host Curtis Sliwa, 71, who secured the Republican Party’s nomination.
The debate at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center at LaGuardia Community College is moderated by Errol Lewis of NY1, Brian Lehrer of WNYC and Katie Honan of The City and aired live on NY1 and via streaming.
The debate is the second and last between the three mayoral candidates, with the first being held on Thursday.
Democratic Socialist candidate Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani is considered the favorite to win the Nov. 4 New York City mayoral election and is participating in Wednesday night’s debate. Pool Photo by Hiroko Masuike/UPI
Many view Mamdani as the favorite to win New York City’s mayoral election, which is scheduled for Nov. 4, but Cuomo has closed ground in recent polls, according to CBS News.
Many also believe Sliwa needs to end his candidacy for Cuomo to overcome Mamdani, which Sliwa has refused to do, the New York Post reported.
Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is running as an independent after losing the Democratic Party primary to Zohran Mamdani and participates in the final New York City mayoral debate on Wednesday. Pool Photo by Hiroko Masuike/UPI
Cuomo favors city oversight of the New York City Transit’s budget, while Mamdani has advocated for revising how the city’s Department of Education approves contracts, WABC-TV reported.
Sliwa is running as a law-and-order candidate and on Wednesday morning said he is ending his conservative talk show on WABC Radio due to the station hosting Cuomo several times in recent weeks.
Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa has been encouraged to end his candidacy to give former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo a better chance at defeating Zohran Mamdani but has refused and is participating in Wednesday night’s debate in New York City. Pool Photo by Hiroko Masuike/UPI
WABC Radio owner John Catsimatidis and program host Sid Rosenberg each have advocated for Sliwa to end his campaign in favor of Cuomo, according to WABC-TV.
