Can Curtis Sliwa Still Save New York - by Dropping Out?

The upcoming New York mayoral election, if it goes like the current polling predicts, will be a disaster for the Big Apple. The voters of New York will, as H.L. Mencken described it, get the government they voted for, good and hard - socialism of the Ugandan variety, under Zohran Mamdani, who, like so many on the left, has never done an honest day's work in his life. Mamdani faces former New York Governor and Democrat Andrew Cuomo and the founder of the Guardian Angels, Republican Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani is, horribly, the favorite to win.

A new poll released Monday, though, brings up the possibility that if Curtis Sliwa were to drop out and throw his support behind Cuomo, then Cuomo might be able to eke out a win. And, yes, it's a heck of a pass New York City has come to, when Andrew Cuomo is the better choice.

The AARP New York survey, published last week, shows that Mamdani, in a head-to-head scenario with former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, leads 44.6% to 40.7% with the vast majority of undecided voters age 50 or older.
Cuomo's support among older voters has increased 9 points since August.
If Cuomo were to drop out instead, Sliwa's support would jump 10 points from August, reaching 31.5%.
"The decisive factor in this race may be the older voters who haven't yet made up their minds," said Stephen Graves, president of Gotham Polling & Analytics.

Regardless of anyone staying in or dropping out, those aren't encouraging numbers. Mamdani still leads Cuomo in a head-to-head, although it's a tighter race; Cuomo would still have to make up a four-point lead by Mamdani to win. With only two weeks left to go, that's a long haul. But if Curtis Sliwa were to drop out and throw his weight behind Cuomo, well, it looks like that's the only way Mamdani might be stopped.

Feels Like We're on the Deck of the Titanic As Zohran Mamdani Holds Overwhelming Lead in NYC Mayoral Race

There's just one catch: On Tuesday, Curtis Sliwa announced in no uncertain terms that he was not dropping out, under any circumstances.

Curtis Sliwa announces that he is REFUSING to drop out "under no circumstance." pic.twitter.com/xCwx1Uy2C9
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 21, 2025

Mr. Sliwa said:

So, let's be very clear. I am not dropping out. Under no circumstance. I've already been offered money to drop out; I said no. Distant from that, there were threats against Nancy and myself. I now have to have armed security with me, former NYPD officer. Never had that in my life. And so now, in this last minute, there's this push to get me to drop out. I was trained as a young boy, like many of you, that it's one person, one vote. I was never taught, at PS 114, or Bildersee Junior High School in Canarsie, that it's one person, one vote. But the billionaires end up picking who's going to be your mayor. And the political elite will make that determination. I trust the people.

That's some good campaigning, and the thing is, this puts Curtis Sliwa in a very interesting position to challenge Zohran Mamdani in 2029, after (as we can safely predict) the "Democratic socialist" has run the Big Apple into the ground. Mr. Sliwa talks up the usual urban-constituency line about billionaires, but after four years of Mamdani economics, there may not be any billionaires left - or jobs, or stores, or who knows, maybe even electricity.

Whoever runs in 2029 may well be able to win by running as the anti-Mamdani.

For now, it's beginning to look a lot like a Mayor Mamdani will be moving into Gracie Mansion. That's not good for New York. But a Mamdani administration may be disastrous enough to serve as an object lesson.

On November 4th, we'll know.

Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.

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