NYC mayoral candidates clash in debate over Gaza, police, housing

NEW YORK, NY – The three men vying to become the next mayor of New York City, the largest city in the United States, clashed multiple times during the debate stage Thursday night on issues ranging from the war in Gaza to public safety to housing costs.

Public safety was discussed throughout the debate; Mamdani’s past disparaging comments about the police and calls to defund the New York City Police Department have come to the fore.

“He believes in defunding the police, demilitarizing the police, defunding the police,” Cuomo said. “That’s it.”

Mamdani attempted to distance herself from her past tweets, stating that they were from 2020.

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All three candidates disputed their plans to address New York City’s housing crisis with Mamdani’s “rent freeze” plan, drawing sharp criticism from Cuomo and Sliwa.

“Freezing rent just defers rent,” Cuomo said of Mamdani’s plan, revealing that many of Mamdani’s opponents argue that a rent freeze would do more harm than good to the housing stock.

Mamdani has sought to distance herself from her past support for decriminalizing prostitution, and has faced criticism from both of her rivals on the issue.

Mamdani’s past statements about Israel were another flashpoint during the debate. Mamdani said at one point that he “of course” supported the call to disarm Hamas, although he dodged questions on the subject in an interview with Fox News Channel the day before.

“I have condemned Hamas many times, and that will never be enough,” Mamdani said.

Republican Curtis Sliwa told Mamdani: “Jews don’t trust you to be there for them when they are victims of anti-Semitic attacks.”

Independent candidate, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, left, and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa participate in the mayoral debate on Thursday, October 16, 2025, in New York City. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis, Pool)

Experiences were also brought up several times in the discussion, focusing on how Mamdani and Cuomo suggested they were candidates with the right resume to lead the city moving forward.

“This is not the job of a first-timer,” Cuomo said of Mamdani, adding: “She’s literally never had a job.”

Sliwa criticized the records of both his opponents, saying, “Thank God I’m not a professional politician because they helped create this crime crisis in the city we’re facing.” he said.

Mamdani responded directly to Cuomo on the experience issue.

“What I lack in experience, I make up for in integrity,” Mamdani told Cuomo. “What you lack in integrity you can never make up for in experience.”

With less than three weeks until Election Day, Mamdani holds a double-digit lead in the race for the nation’s most populous city, but Cuomo is narrowing the gap, according to the latest polling.

The tightening contest underscores how Cuomo’s independent bid continues to gain support from disgruntled Democrats after embattled Mayor Eric Adams dropped out of the race.

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Supporters of Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani gather outside 30 Rock in New York City on Thursday, October 16, 2025. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox News Digital)

Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist state legislator from New York City’s Queens borough who shocked the political world with her convincing victory in June on Cuomo The latest poll in the race from Quinnipiac University shows nine other candidates vying for the Democratic Party’s mayoral nomination with 46 percent support among likely voters.

Cuomo, who resigned from the governorship in 2021 after many scandals and participated in the general elections as an independent candidate after losing the primary election, received 33 percent support in the survey conducted between October 3-7.

Sliwa, who was the Republican mayoral candidate for the second consecutive time in the Democrat-majority city, received 15 percent of the votes in the poll.

Quinnipiac’s survey was the only major survey in this area After AdamsThe Democrat, who was running for re-election as an independent, withdrew from the race.

In a previous poll conducted by Quinnipiac University in early September, Mamdani had a 22-point lead over Cuomo, 45%-23%; Sliwa was at 15% and Adams was at 12%.

Despite Mamdani’s lead in the Gracie Mansion race, the democratic socialist has struggled to win endorsements from national party leaders, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (DY) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DY).

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Supporters of former Governor Andrew Cuomo gather outside 30 Rock in New York City on Thursday, October 16, 2025. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox News Digital)

Mamdani recently received an endorsement from Gov. Kathy Hochul, who joined Mamdani on the campaign trail this week but has since refused to return the favor.
Asked whether candidates would support Hochul for re-election, Mamdai said: “This is a decision that should be made after the general elections.” he said.