The City Politic: Errol Louis

The Mayor Is the Message: How long can Eric Adams coast on telling people he is in charge?

- Errol Louis

“I’M THE MAYOR” is a phrase Eric Adams says frequently, usually as a way to end an argument against adversaries seen and unseen.

“I don’t know if you’ve been picking up on what’s been happening,” Adams recently told the Brooklyn Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, an organization that supports Black schoolchildren, referring to attempts to limit his control over the Rikers Island jail complex and the city’s schools. “They want to take away everything when Eric becomes the mayor. And I say you’re not getting a darn thing—I’m controlling the city.”

And then the punch line, delivered with a big grin. “One thing they must understand: I’m the mayor.” The crowd of Black middle-class homeowners and professionals—Adams’s political base—cheered.

It’s as if Hizzoner senses a need to make sure his authority is recognized and respected. “People look at your presentation before they take you seriously,” he told a group of graduating college students years ago. “Everything about you must say power.” The question is whether the public believes the mayor’s actions match his rhetoric. The early read is: not really.

A recent NY1–Siena College poll found that 56 percent of New Yorkers thought the city was heading in the wrong direction. The 7 percent who described Adams as doing an excellent job were far outweighed by the 29 percent who called his performance poor.

Only six months into his tenure, Adams finds himself in a deep hole. And he is discovering that, while he may be the mayor of New York, the office is subject to a thick tangle of limits, checks, and balances.