Outgoing New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Monday that he remains undecided about attending the swearing-in of his successor, Zohran Mamdani, suggesting that the mayor-elect’s base of supporters is giving him pause.

Speaking to reporters at an unrelated City Hall event, Adams said he does not want to distract from Mamdani’s inauguration on Jan. 1, but argued that some of Mamdani’s supporters “would rather protest everything.”

“Unfortunately, there’s a body of his supporters who would rather protest everything,” Adams said, adding that he would attend if Mamdani wanted him there. “If the incoming mayor is cool — I’m cool,” Adams said, referring to Mamdani’s planned block party and celebration outside City Hall.

The remarks underscore lingering tensions between Adams and the city’s progressive left. Some Mamdani supporters, particularly those sharply critical of Israel, have clashed with Adams over his outspoken pro-Israel stance and his emphasis on combating antisemitism during his final years in office. Those divisions were heightened during the Columbia University encampments, which became a flashpoint between far-left activists and the moderate mayor.

Adams, who has spent recent weeks traveling abroad, said he is still weighing his post–City Hall plans, which may include pursuing a PhD, writing a memoir, and continuing work against antisemitism.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)