Political pundit: Mayor Eric Adams taking big risk endorsing moderate Democrats over progressives in state primary

NEW YORK — Tuesday is decision day for New York voters and Mayor Eric Adams is taking an unusually active role in a number of state Senate primary races.

The mayor wants to defeat left wing Democrats who support criminal justice reforms, which he says have made it more difficult to make the streets safer, CBS2’s Marcia Kramer reported Monday.

READ MORE: Candidates make final push to voters in key New York primary races  

Adams has only been in office about eight months, but he’s already spending his political capital on an attempt to change the political atmosphere in Albany by bending the Senate to his more moderate way of thinking.

Some say it’s a risky endeavor.

“I want people in Albany that understand the prerequisite to prosperity is public safety and justice,” Adams said.

READ MORE: New York voter guide: Deadlines and details for August 2022 primary election 

The mayor, who you may recall spent two terms in Albany as a state senator from Brooklyn, explained his decision to inject himself into the oftentimes tense ideological divide by making endorsements in about a dozen Senate primaries. He wants moderates, not progressives.

“I think that there’s some people, some people, in Albany that are not identifying the reality that is playing out on our streets,” Adams said.

READ MORE: New York delegation could lose seniority, strength in Congress after August primary election  

Adams, who beat a number of more progressive candidates who wanted to defund the cops, has had trouble keeping his promise to make the streets safer. He has blamed much of the difficulty on bail reform and a revolving-door justice system where those who commit serious crimes are often put back on the street.

“I hear the public every day. I watch them when I’m on the subway system. I know they’re tired of someone punching someone in the face, having them in critical condition, and then the person who punched them on parole walks out. Something is wrong with that and I need people in Albany that they believe like I do. We need to protect innocent New Yorkers,” the mayor said.

Adams’ choices include incumbents like Brooklyn Sen. Kevin Parker, former City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley, a moderate, who is running for an open Queens seat, and three candidates facing rivals backs by the Democratic Socialists of America.

“It’s incredibly dangerous for him to do this, particularly so early in his tenure before he’s gotten a lot of policy initiatives off the ground,” political consultant Basil Smikle said.

READ MORE: Poll gives Rep. Jerry Nadler edge in NY-12 primary with Rep. Carolyn Maloney, Attorney Suraj Patel   

Smikle said that while the mayor’s strategy is politically risky, it may be necessary.

“I think he’s looking down the road and feeling that he needs to get crime and violence off the front page, that there needs to be more tweaks to bail reform, because there are a lot of policies, particularly crime and education, that he needs to get through the state Legislature by getting folks elected that share his vision,” Smikle said.

Even if the mayor’s endorsements pan out in a handful of races, he’ll be able to take a victory lap. But the downside is the potential for political payback if those he didn’t endorse win anyway.