Despite assurances from Mayor Eric Adams that he has done nothing improper or illegal, the ongoing investigation into his interactions with Turkey that are part of a federal campaign-finance investigation, are causing his approval ratings to plunge.
According to the latest poll conducted by Marist, more than seven in ten New York City residents thought he did something wrong during his 2021 campaign.
Among New York City voters, only 37 percent approved of the job Eric Adams has done as mayor while 54 percent disapproved. Compare that to another Marist survey in March 2022, just a few months into his term, when he polled favorably 61 percent to 24 percent, and it is easy to conclude that things are not rosy for the Big Apple mayor.
Although Adams has not been accused of any wrongdoing, the optics of his situation are not favorable as 33 percent of New York City voters said they thought he “has done something illegal”; 39 percent said he “has done something unethical, but not illegal”; while only 18 percent said he “has done nothing wrong.”
But the investigation is only one cloud hanging above Adams’ head as Mayor. The migrant crisis is out of control and its repercussions affect all residents—especially as Adams announced just a few days ago that all city services except Fire and Police will have to be cut by a whopping 5% in order to manage the crisis.
Then there is crime. Although City officials repeatedly cite statistics claiming that it is down, the average NYC resident does not feel safe in the city. In August at a news conference, a reporter asked the mayor how he could justify his claim that New York remained “the safest big city in America” with the reality that people didn’t necessarily feel that way. He had no convincing explanation.
The present crisis of confidence in Mayor Adams intensified yesterday when it was revealed by THE CITY that a high-end Manhattan sushi restaurant opened by mega-developer SL Green, one of Mayor Eric Adams’ biggest financial backers, received high-priority from the Deputy Mayor of Operations to be eligible for fast-track FDNY inspections needed to open for business.
The DMO list, which is at the center of the ongoing federal investigation of Adams’ fundraising tactics and whether big money donors to the mayor have been able to skip the line for required fire-safety system inspections by being placed on this fast-track list, is now receiving extra scrutiny and more examples of alleged favoritism could come to light.
This would most likely further damage Adams’ approval ratings and escalate its downward turn.
