The Working Families Party officially endorsed four candidates in the 2025 NYC mayor’s race on Sunday. This endorsement is part of their campaign to convince voters not to rank either Andrew Cuomo or incumbent Eric Adams on their ballots in the June Democratic primary.
Queens Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani, City Comptroller Brad Lander, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, and Brooklyn state Sen. Zellnor Myrie walked through City Hall Park on March 30 arm-in-arm as they prepared to accept their endorsement. Gathering in the shadow of City Hall, the candidates stood with members of the Working Families Party, who charged that they were sick and tired of corruption and scandals.
The move was geared to the ranked-choice nature of the June Democratic primary contest. Voters can rank up to five candidates in their order of preference on their ballots, with the lesser choices being counted when their top choice is eliminated. The candidate who gets a majority of votes through ranked-choice voting wins the nomination.
Co-Director of the New York Working Families Party Ana María Archila said they were looking to endorse candidates who would not become embroiled in scandals and would stand up to the Trump administration in favor of New Yorkers.
“New York City needs a leader who is able to unite people, who is able to lead with courage against authoritarian threats coming from the White House, who is committed to advancing solutions that meet the needs of people who are struggling to make ends meet,” Archila said. “Every single New Yorker who has endured the chaos of his last administration, and who knows that the chaos coming from Washington requires a leader and a set of leaders who will stand together.”
On top of standing behind their four candidates, the party also asked for voters to stay away from adding Eric Adams and Andrew Cuomo, citing their respective corruption and sexual misconduct allegations as major reasons to steer clear from their names on the ballot.
Candidates, such as Speaker Adams, seized on her competitors’ troubled pasts and took them to task.
“I’m not running for mayor for the power; I don’t need the power. I’m running for the people because I’m one of the people. I’m running to empower all of you, and as mayor, I can promise you there will be no drama, there will be no scandal, and there will be no nonsense,” Adams said. “Ranked choice is an opportunity for us to advance our city, and we must take it.”
While the Working Families Party has yet to choose in what order they themselves would rank their chosen candidates, they say that will change in the months to come. Before election time they promised they would pick their number one choice.
In addition to challenging their mayoral adversaries, the candidates also promised to protect residents of the Big Apple from cuts ordered by Donald Trump and the DOJ.
“Donald Trump has put working people firmly in the crosshairs of his administration,” Mamdani said. “I am also proud to stand alongside candidates who are united in the belief that we have to turn the page on disgraced leadership in this city.“
Endorses have dubbed the slate of four candidates the DREAM team, which also stands for “Don’t Rank Eric or Andrew for Mayor” slate.
”I am proud to join this DREAM slate so that we can have a mayor who stands up and fights for our values, and we can have a mayor who governs the city better so we can live up to our values, so we can end street homelessness of people with serious mental illness, so we can protect tenants and build affordable housing and restore the pathway to homeownership,” Lander said. “That is a dream worth fighting for.”
Myrie also stressed that this mayoral race is about rebuking New York City and is honored to receive the support of the Working Families Party.
”I’m running to make New York more affordable, livable, and safe for everyone; that means one million new homes so every New Yorker has a place to live, free afterschool and full-day 3-K to support working families, and safe streets and subways in every neighborhood. I’m proud the Working Families Party is endorsing our campaign to rebuild NYC, and I look forward to their support on the campaign trail,” he said.
