A fresh flurry of federal raids on Mayor Eric Adams’ inner circle—this time involving some of his top deputies — could leave him more vulnerable than ever as a growing field of challengers looks to take his job in next year’s Democratic primary.
On Wednesday, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright, Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks, Police Commissioner Edward Caban and City Hall Senior Adviser Tim Pearson became just some of the latest figures in the mayor’s orbit to have their homes raided and electronics seized by federal investigators. Much is still unknown about the raids and whether they are part of the same investigation, but the probe(s) are reportedly being run out of the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan.
However, the apparent investigations that came to light through multiple published reports on Thursday seem unconnected to the federal probe into the mayor’s 2021 campaign that has been in public view for nearly a year, according to a source with knowledge of the matter. That investigation has so far seen the FBI agents execute search warrants at the homes of Adams’ former chief fundraiser Brianna Suggs and City Hall aide Rana Abasova as well as the mayor himself having his phones seized.
A third federal inquiry, reportedly helmed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn, is looking into another top mayoral aide: Winnie Greco. Her two Bronx homes were searched by FBI agents in February as part of the investigation.
Neither the mayor nor any of his aides ensnared in the investigations have been charged with a crime.
Adams’ prospective opponents from the left were quick to wield news of the latest raids as a cudgel against him.
One of those challengers, former City Comptroller Scott Stringer, has been hammering home the notion that Adams and his administration cannot focus on the basics of governing the largest city in America while they are embroiled in federal investigations.
“If he’s not distracted by all this, he’s delusional, and if this is what his focus looks like, he needs new lenses,” Stringer said in a Friday statement.
City Comptroller Brad Lander, another one of the mayor’s 2025 competitors, echoed similar sentiments in a Thursday statement posted on social media.
“More than ever, New York City needs honest, trustworthy and focused leadership,” Lander said. “Amidst an unending stream of stories about the Adams administration being raided and investigated by federal law enforcement, it is clear that New Yorkers are not getting the steady leadership we deserve.”
Zohran Mamdani, a socialist Queens Assemblymember who is also rumored to be weighing a run against Adams, hit the same point.
“Once again, the FBI is raiding the homes of Mayor Adams’ inner circle,” Mamdani wrote on social media.“New Yorkers are facing a historic cost of living crisis. An administration plagued by corruption and distracted by scandal cannot effectively deal with it.”
But Basil Smikle, former head of the state Democratic Party and an ex-political consultant, suggested the mayor’s opponents may be getting ahead of themselves. He said right now the latest federal actions “raises a lot of questions, but no clear answers as to the fate of Adams’ mayoralty.”
“Today it seems like [Adams’] base is still with him and until the focus of these investigations becomes more defined he will continue to blow it off as a distraction,” he added.
Long-time political consultant Hank Sheinkopf agreed that Stringer and Lander may be jumping the gun. He said the mayor is still vulnerable to attacks stemming from the federal inquires, arguing that Adams has few major accomplishments he can point to as a means to distract from them.
“The mayor’s problem is that he can’t point to a singular achievement that would standout, an administration-defining achievement, one thing that people could hold onto that would serve as a block to people thinking about something else,” Sheinkopf said. “He needs a singular accomplishment that makes all of this feel unimportant.”
For instance, Sheinkopf said, Adams’ predecessor Bill de Blasio was able to point to his signature universal Pre-K program when he was under federal investigation himself. That was also true, he said, for former Mayor Ed Koch, who was able to point to his role in pulling the city out of the fiscal crisis of the 1970s when his administration was plagued by corruption scandals.
Meanwhile, some on Friday began calling on the NYPD commissioner to resign —either on his own or at Adams’ behest — in the wake of the feds’ seizing his electronic devices. Those calling for Caban’s ouster include the New York Post Editorial Board and Conservative Democratic Council Member Robert Holden, who represents a district in Queens.
But both Smikle and Sheinkopf said that Adams should not ask for Caban’s resignation at this time.
“The investigations will still be out there and we don’t know if it stops with the commissioner or with him,” Smikle said.
