Top White House officials are in talks over a potential job for Eric Adams in President Trump’s administration — as pressure mounts for mayoral candidates to drop out and clear the lane for the strongest challenger against socialist Zohran Mamdani, The Post has learned.
The conversations about a potential plum gig for Adams, including an ambassadorship, have been taking place among high-level Trump officials as polling shows the mayor in fourth place in the approaching November election, sources said.
Adams landing a job in Trump’s administration would arguably benefit former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who’s increasingly seen as the best anti-Mamdani candidate – at least in a head-to-head race.
Mayor Eric Adams could be up for a job in the Trump administration. Matthew McDermott
“I think Adams would be able to craft a position and a portfolio that’s to his liking,” a source close to Trump’s administration said.
“I’ve heard the Adams team wants it,” another source close to the White House said.
A source in the mayor’s orbit confirmed his team has pushed him to take the federal golden parachute — but Adams seemingly hasn’t fully bought in.
“I have a job. I’m running for re-election, I’m still doing that and I’m looking forward to getting re-elected,” Adams told reporters when asked about the discussions during an unrelated press conference Wednesday.
The backroom talks come as the scandal-scarred Adams’ independent re-election bid not only appears doomed, but is also likely to ease Mamdani’s path to victory amid a crowded field of four mayoral contenders.
Mamdani became the front-runner after he surprisingly trounced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary.
Cuomo didn’t listen to voters’ rejection and also mounted an independent run.
The constellation of candidates has only helped solidify Mamdani’s lead in the race, with polls showing he only really faces a fight in a one-on-one contest against Cuomo.
Whether President Trump is involved with the Adams job talks is unclear. AP
Trump surrogates and officials for months have been trying to get weaker candidates such as independent Jim Walden and GOP mayoral nominee Curtis Sliwa to drop out, sources said. Walden suspended his beyond-longshot bid Tuesday.
Adams had avoided running as a Democrat after Trump Department of Justice officials controversially dropped the federal corruption case against him.
He mounted an independent bid after he and big donors unsuccessfully pushed to get Sliwa a Trump administration job — a move that would’ve helped Adams sew up the Republican Party line in the general election, sources have said.
Sliwa had indeed refused a job offer from the administration, one source said.
“Now, they are seeing if Adams would be interested in working for the administration,” the source said. “Adams is in a unique position in the sense of he does share a lot of the administration’s goals especially on crime and immigration, so he could likely make a real impact whether at home or abroad.”
The prospect of an ambassadorship is seen as the most enticing for Adams, given his longstanding plan to do international consulting work after his mayoralty, another source said.
“He can have any ambassadorship he wants,” a source close to Adams boasted.
Curtis Sliwa remains in the race as the GOP nominee. Getty Images
White House officials didn’t respond to requests for comment.
“Mayor Adams has made it clear he will not respond to every rumor that comes up. He will remain focus , not be distracted and Grind for New Yorkers,” Adams campaign spokesman Todd Shapiro said in a statement.
Adams hasn’t hadn’t any discussions with Trump, nor has he met with the president regarding the mayoral race, Shapiro said.
“The Mayor is fully committed to winning this election, with millions of New Yorkers preparing to cast their votes. His record is clear: crime is down, jobs are up, and he has consistently stood up for working families. Mayor Adams is focused on building on that progress and earning four more years to continue delivering for the people of New York.”
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Shapiro emphatically denied a Politico report that Adams had been offered a position at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“Although Mayor Adams has been the most pro-housing mayor in New York City’s history, at no time did he ask for—nor was he offered—a job at HUD,” Shapiro said. “And if the HUD job does open, Andrew Cuomo held that position before and can always continue where he left off.”
Mamdani quickly seized on the news that White House officials had considered job offers for Adams and Sliwa.
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He also resurfaced accusations that Cuomo and Trump had talked over the phone about the mayoral race.
“We have learned what New Yorkers have long suspected: that Andrew Cuomo is Donald Trump’s choice to be the next mayor of this city,” he said at a press conference.
“I have no issue facing Andrew Cuomo one-on-one. That’s exactly what he wanted for so many months in the primary and we gave it to him, defeating him by 13 points.”
Adams and his campaign officials had scheduled a meeting for Wednesday afternoon to discuss how to move forward with his longshot re-election bid, if at all, insiders said.
Zohran Mamdani’s front-runner status has amped up pressure on some mayoral candidates to drop out. Robert Miller
Adams and his campaign officials have scheduled a meeting for Wednesday afternoon to discuss how to move forward with his longshot re-election bid, if at all, insiders said.
The mayor has vehemently insisted he’s in the race for the long haul, but seemed to soften his tune after a trip to Florida on Tuesday, the day after his birthday.
When Adams was asked by a Fox5 reporter Wednesday morning about rumors he could be dropping out of the race, he gave a less-than-adamant denial.
“Whenever I make a move, I’ll make an announcement. I’m in this race to win and if anything changes, trust me, I’ll be on Channel 5,” he said.
City Hall spokesperson Kayla Mamelak said Adams plans to continue out his term.
“Mayor Adams is a lifelong New Yorker who has dedicated his entire career to this city, and he intends to continue that work for another four years as mayor,” she said.
— Additional reporting by Hannah Fierick, Carl Campanile and Matthew Fischetti