Governor Kathy Hochul has decided not to remove New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office, but instead announced a plan to limit his authority following a string of scandals.
The New York governor said she would propose legislation and measures aimed at exerting more oversight over the mayor’s office. Adams responded there would have been no legal basis to remove him.
The US Justice Department is currently pushing to drop a corruption case against Adams, which a former top prosecutor alleged was a deal in exchange for the mayor’s cooperation on immigration enforcement.
Adams was indicted on corruption and bribery charges last year, and his trial is scheduled for April. The mayor pleaded not guilty and has denied wrongdoing.
Announcing her proposed “guardrails” against Adams on Thursday, the governor said she decided not to use her power to remove the mayor as she could not defy the “will of the voters”.
In her new plan, she has proposed a new inspector general position for New York City, providing more resources for officials to take legal action against the Trump administration, and expanding funding for the state comptroller’s office to conduct more oversight of the city.
Hochul said these steps would “make sure our leaders are operating only with the city’s best interest in mind”.
The plan would still require approval from the New York City Council and state legislature.
The mayor said in a statement later: “While there is no legal basis for limiting New Yorkers’ power by limiting the authority of my office, I have told the governor, as we have done in the past, that I am willing to work with her to ensure faith in our government is strong.”
Hochul’s attempt to rein in the mayor comes as he awaits the decision of a New York judge regarding his corruption case.
Adams was indicted last year for allegedly accepting gifts totalling more than $100,000 (£75,000) from Turkish citizens in exchange for favours.
The Trump administration ordered its Manhattan prosecutors to drop the case against Adams, arguing it impedes his official duties for national security.
Shortly after the directive, the top Manhattan federal prosecutor in the case, Danielle Sassoon, resigned in protest. Several other federal prosecutors followed.
In a letter to the US attorney general, Sassoon alleged that the justice department and Adams’ lawyers had engaged in a quid-pro-quo for the mayor to enforce Trump’s immigration policies in exchange for dropping the case.
Amid the uproar, Hochul announced that she was weighing whether to use her powers to remove Adams.
Adams denied he had propositioned the justice department to drop the case in exchange for immigration enforcement.
His attorney, Alex Spiro, argued in court that because Adams lost his security clearance due to his criminal charges, the case should be dismissed so that he can again participate in high-level public safety conversations.
The case has sent the city’s government into upheaval and infuriated New Yorkers, dozens of whom appeared for Adams’ hearing this week to boo him as he arrived at court. A handful of supporters held signs on the courthouse steps.
As the Trump administration seeks to dismiss the charges against Adams, the president has sought to flex his influence over New York City, announcing he intends to revoke approval for the city’s congestion pricing programme that started in January.
In her remarks, Hochul took aim directly at the Trump administration, referring to him at one point as a “king”.
“We know they’ll stop at nothing to try to exercise control over New York,” she said of the Trump administration.
