Some polls put Sliwa a distant third behind Zohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo. Will his continued candidacy split the anti‑Mamdani vote and hand the city to the socialist nominee?
Posted on 10/24/2025 9:52:28 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Anyone who has spent time around New York City has probably run into Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa. A tall, tough hombre with his trademark red beret, he probably knows every crack, crevice, and crack house in the city. Heck, he's probably on a first-name basis with half the city's cats, given the dozens of adoptees he has in his apartment.
From his career slinging hamburgers in an all-night fast food restaurant in the bad old days of the Bronx-is-burning to his 24/7 radio career, he is the man who never sleeps in the city that never sleeps. His knowledge of the city is unparalleled. From founding the Guardian Angels to miraculously surviving being gunned down by John Gotti's goons, he knows where the bodies are buried. If elected, he will need no city hall learning curve.
Sliwa ran for mayor against Eric Adams last time. Adams, clearly not the best and brightest — there was even a question whether he actually lived in the city — was one of those mystery candidates who, despite lacking every necessary skill, got the job. He is now out of this race based on that clear lack of talent. Sliwa lost last time, and if he stays in the race, he will likely lose again. But is that truly his fault?
Losing is what most New York City Republicans do. The registration numbers aren't there. The organized lobby groups, the unions, and the latte-drinking New York Times readers are not there for him. And now, with the national business community firmly with the Democrats, his slalom run to victory is steep indeed.
Sliwa is even under the gun from billionaire Republicans. Both John Catsimatidis and hedge‑fund billionaire Bill Ackman have called on Sliwa to hit the bricks so that the opposition can coalesce...
(Excerpt) Read more at pjmedia.com ...
Cuomo will lose either way.
Seriously, is there a dime’s worth of difference between Zohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo? Cuomo is the man who launched a thousand nursing home deaths, told Republicans they should move out of the state, stated openly that MAGA is nonsense because America was never great to begin with, and instituted no-cash bail. In what world is he the NYC savior?
Seriously, is there a dime’s worth of difference between Zohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo? Cuomo is the man who launched a thousand nursing home deaths, told Republicans they should move out of the state, stated openly that MAGA is nonsense because America was never great to begin with, and instituted no-cash bail. In what world is he the NYC savior?
It's going to be a huge propaganda victory for Islamists if Zohran Mamdani becomes the next Mayor of New York City.
Voting for Cuomo denies them of that victory.
Joe Sptzlfx says he should stay the course.
What if New Yorkers could go back in time and choose a real, charismatic, attractive, articulate candidate for the GOP for mayor.
Unless like the Stephen King novel 11.23.63 everything would go even further wrong.
But a truly weak candidate for the GOP, an unpopular symbol of covid years deaths of trapped people in the lockdowns and an outspoken Socialist who is really a Communist is about to take over and destroy New York.
It depends. Is he working for mandami or NYC?
If Sliwa drops out or even if he doesn’t, then the race is between Hitler and Stalin.
Sliwa should stay in the race. New Yorkers have made their bed, and the Democrats nominated Mamdani over Cuomo, so let them take the fall. It’s not the Republican’s responsibility to drop out to favor a socialist Democrat over a communist Democrat.
If he wants to do what's best for NYC, he'll drop out and endorse Cuomo. He's not going to win but he'll play the role of a spoiler.
There are two bad choices. But Cuomo is not as bad as Zohran Mamdani.
Does it really matter? Isn’t the communist candidate polling above 50%?
Absolutely. Give people more choices.
Sliwa is not a weak candidate. Not in the context of the NY GOP.
He's a known NYC fixture, with a passionate following. He's polling better than most of NY's GOP politicians would poll.
I LOLed!
“Sliwa should stay in the race.”
He should stay in. Why should he help the Democrats? Why should we help the Democrats?
Why cant more people see that?
Screw that
Seriously, cuomo and mamdani need to drop out of the race.
I’ve been praying that God would spare NYC just like He did for us in the 2024 election for the whole country.
Along with other state elections. A LOT is at stake this election cycle in state and local elections. And then there’s the 2026 midterms.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.