United Federation of Teachers endorses Zohran Mamdani in NYC mayor's race
The United Federation of Teachers has endorsed Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani in the New York City mayor's race.
Of the union's more than 200,000 members, 63% supported a resolution to back the Queens assemblyman, CBS News New York's Lisa Rozner reported Wednesday.
"As a union, we have to protect public education, public employees, and public service from attacks from Washington, D.C. We have to make New York City safer and more affordable for working- and middle-class families. We have to make the jobs of educators and nurses more attractive with better pay and benefits, and retain those already doing the work. We need a mayor who understands the task before us and who will help us get it done. The UFT Delegate Assembly has determined that Zohran Mamdani can be that partner as the next mayor of New York City," UFT president Michael Mulgrew said in a statement.
Mamdani celebrated the endorsement Wednesday morning at a news conference with Mulgrew.
"I think when we are looking at Eric Adams' education record and his policies, I think there are important discussions to be had around literacy, and I look forward to having those discussions not only with policy experts, but also with this union," Mamdani said.
Adams' campaign responded in a statement.
"Let's be clear: Mayor Eric Adams' only agenda when it comes to our schools is putting students first, not playing political games or appeasing union power brokers. Under Mayor Adams' leadership, New York City has expanded early childhood education, boosted literacy rates, and delivered record investments to historically underserved schools," the campaign said.
Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa said it was chaos pre-2002, when there was a Board of Education. He said his educational plan includes "way more vocational training because that's the salvation to a lot of young children who can't adapt to an academic schedule, adding, "I would cut that budget and demand productivity from the deputy chancellors."
The UFT's support for Mamdani follows an endorsement from the Manhattan Democratic Party earlier in the week, the latest in a string of nods for the Democratic socialist. Last week, he garnered the endorsements of the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, New York State Nurses Association and New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO.
President Trump on Mamdani, New York City, and the mayor's race
President Trump said Tuesday he wouldn't endorse any candidate, but he did call Mamdani a "communist."
"If a communist gets elected to run New York, it can never be the same. But we have tremendous power to run places where we have to," Trump said.
On Wednesday morning, Mamdani responded to those comments, while also criticizing Adams' leadership.
"There's too much that I've been proud of in Albany that we have passed, like class size reduction, that we've then seen flail when it comes to New York City," Mamdani said. "Too much of what we have actually put into law is being treated as if it is a suggestion. And we see too many leaders who continue to treat the law in that manner. And I'm not just speaking about Eric Adams or Andrew Cuomo, but even Donald Trump, who just yesterday spoke about democracy as if was something that he could either opt in or opt out of."
CBS News New York reached out to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo's team for comment, and have not yet heard back. His campaign website says he'd secure state funding to implement the mandate to reduce class sizes, and make sure it doesn't reduce the capacity of selective schools.
Endorsement comes amid calls for independents to shake up the race
The endorsements for Mamdani come as former New York Gov. David Paterson called on Adams and Cuomo to shake up the mayor's race by unifying to defeat Mamdani, suggesting one of them bow out so the other can set up a clear challenge and avoid splitting the vote.
Neither Adams nor Cuomo seemed eager to embrace the suggestion of bowing out to clear the path for the other.
"I said, 'Andrew, are you that level of arrogance? I'm the sitting mayor. I'm the sitting mayor of the city of New York and you expect for me to step aside when you just lost to Zohran by 12 points?'" Adams said Monday.
"We do not see any path to victory for Mayor Adams. This is the time to put aside the usual political selfishness and agree to do what is truly best for all New Yorkers. While we review this proposal, we call on other candidates to do the same," a Cuomo campaign spokesperson said.
Mamdani's campaign, meanwhile, responded to Paterson's proposal with this statement:
"More than 545,000 New Yorkers voted for Zohran Mamdani, the most votes any Democratic primary candidate has received in 36 years. In the coming months, Zohran looks forward to growing this coalition and reaching new voters with his vision for an affordable New York City and his plan to deliver universal childcare, fast and free buses, and a rent-freeze for more than 2 million New Yorkers," Mamdani's campaign said.
Political expert J.C. Polanco says the latest polling shows Mamdani at 35%, with the opposition candidates splitting the rest of the vote.
"Remember, you don't need a majority of the vote in order to become mayor of New York City. All you need is the plurality," Polanco said. "When all of those candidates coalesce, then, yes, Mamdani can be defeated in November. But from the looks of it, ego, hubris the idea of what if has taken over and none of those men is thinking of dropping out."
Polanco said if they want to defeat Mamdani they need to rally behind a single candidate, before it's too late.
