NYC mayoral election: Which candidates have received the most endorsements? 

Early voting has ended, and tomorrow is the last day for New Yorkers to cast their ballot in the mayoral primary election. As voters head to the polls, they may be interested in knowing which public figures and organizations have endorsed which candidates.

Democratic Primary

The New York City Democratic mayoral primary is one of the most awaited elections in recent city history. With many national and local stars on the ballot representing different views of the “left,"  who will face the Republican challenger is still a fairly open question.

Through examining the endorsements published on the various candidates' websites and NY Magazines tracker, our team ranked the Democrats and Republicans running for mayor based on "major endorsements."

Eric Adams

Eric Adams, the current frontrunner, is the Brooklyn Borough President. Before taking on this role, he served in the New York state senate, and before that was a captain in the New York Police Department.

Adams is tied with Maya Wiley for the number of major endorsements received. Both have garnered thirty-eight endorsements from politicians, non-profit and labor organizations, and news outlets. 

Adams has been endorsed by twenty-one labor organizations, including DC 37 -- New York City’s largest union for public employees; New York State Public Employees Federation; 32 BJ SEIU; Hotel Trade Council FDNY Local 2507; and New York State Court Officers Association.

As a state-lawmaker himself, Adams has received sweeping support from government officials, including former New York state governor David Paterson, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, Thomas Suozzi, Andriano Espaillat, and Gregory Meeks.

Maya Wiley

Maya Wiley is a lawyer and professor who received her JD from Colombia University. Wiley currently teaches at The New School but before worked for the NAACP and the American Civil Liberties Union. Like Adams, she has received thirty-eight major endorsements.

Her leadership at these organizations and her progressive view garnered her the support of Congressmembers Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Yvette Clake, Nydia Velázquez, and Jamaal Bowman. Wiley has received the endorsement of over a dozen state lawmakers as well.

As for political action organizations, Emily’s List, Amplify Her, Democracy for America, Community Voices Heard, and Empire State Indivisible have all back Wiley.

Kathryn Garcia

Until September of this year, Kathryn Garcia served as the 43rd Commissionaire of the New York City Sanitation Department. The former-Commissionaire has seventeen major endorsements, including one of the most coveted from the New York Times Editorial Board. The NYT EB stated that Garcia had the “temperament” and “experience” to "get the city back on its feet,” in “perhaps the most consequential mayoral contest in a generation.”

Garcia was also endorsed by four other media outlets: El Diario, Crain’s New York Business, The Chief, and The New York Daily News.

Clearly, a media favorite, Garcia also has fairly widespread support from organized labor, including Teamsters 813, Teamsters Local 831, and the Uniformed Santitaiton Chiefs Association.

Andrew Yang

Former US Presidential Candidate Andrew Yang served as President Obama’s Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship after founding Venture for America. The mission of Venture for America is “to create economic opportunity in American cities” through the training and placement of recent college graduates and young professionals in start-ups in cities across the US.

Early on, former Presidential candidate Andrew Yang was the presumed frontrunner, but he has fallen behind in recent polling after various blunderous comments. Throughout his campaign, he received twenty major endorsements, including Congressman Richie Torres.

Over ten state leaders have also endorsed his candidacy. Major organizations, including the AAPI Victory Fund the Freelancers Union, have also backed Yang.

Ray McGuire

Ray McGuire entered the mayoral race from the private sector, serving as an executive at Citigroup.

McGuire has received twelve major endorsements, including a few celebrities ranging from director Spike Lee to athletes including Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley. Like Eric Adams, he has also been endorsed by Congressman Gregory Meeks. At the state level, lawmakers Vivian Cook and Robert Rodrigez have also stated their public support for his candidacy.

Dianne Morales

Dianne Morales has strong roots in the New York City community as she worked as a public school teacher, going on to lead an educational non-profit, Phipps Neighborhoods. In total, Morales has received fourteen major endorsements.

A New York native raised in a working-class family, Morales is the youngest candidate in the race. She has received the endorsement of key progressive organizations including, Sunrise Movement, Future Steps US, and Students for Gun Legislation.

Her other major endorsements include NY state assembly members Jessica González-Rojas, Harvey Epstein, and Marcela Mitanynes.

Scott Stringer

Scott Stringer currently serves as the NYC Controller, and from 2006 through 2013 held the title of Manhatten Borough President. Throughout his campaign, Stringer has received twelve major endorsements.

Early in the race, he had received major endorsements from many US Congress members, but they later recondensed choosing to support Maya Wiley.

Stringer maintained the endorsements of Congressman Jerry Nadler, who serves as the Chairmen of the Judiciary Committee. Leading national teaching unions, the Unified Federation of Teachers, have also stated their support for Stinger.

He received the endorsement of the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York, one of the most prominent LGBTQIA+ organizations in the city.

Shaun Donovan

Shaun Donovan served in the Obama administration as the Director of the US Office of Management and Budget, more commonly known as the OMB, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.  Donovan has ten major endorsements.

With a high profile in federal politics, he has received various endorsements, including from John Hickenlooper, Senator from Colorado. Other key endorsements include Michael Nutter, Mayor of Philidelphia, and the 314 Action Fund, which helps to elect people who “use evidence and facts to fight climate change and fix our broken health care system.”

Republican Primary

There are two leading candidates in the GOP mayoral primary, Fernando Mateo and Curtis Sliwa. The most recent polling shows Sliwa in the lead.

Curtis Sliwa

Curtis Sliwa founded the crime prevention organization Guardian Angels and is also a radio talk show host. His campaign motto is “Save Our City,” and he has received endorsement from former NYC mayor Rudy Guliani and Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis.

Fernando Mateo

In the late 1990s, Fernando Mateo became the President of the New York State Federation of Taxi Driver, an organization he has received the endorsement of.

Later, in 2003, he was named to the White House Presidential Scholar Commission by President Bush.

Mateo’s campaign has been endorsed by the NYC Republicans and Moms for America. From the private sector, he has been supported by the United Bodegas of America.