New York City Comptroller Brad Lander is preparing to announce an election-year run against Mayor Adams within the next two weeks, several political sources revealed to the Daily News.
According to one of the sources, who spoke to Lander directly and in detail about the situation, the progressive comptroller plans to forego couching his announcement with the caveat that he’s “exploring” a run because he has to shore up a coalition of support quickly before next year’s Democratic primary.
That source and three others added that Lander is planning to make his announcement after an important Campaign Finance Board filing deadline, which will lead to two other potential candidates — former Comptroller Scott Stringer and state Sen. Zellnor Myrie — revealing how much money they’ve raised for their exploratory mayoral runs.
Those fundraising numbers are expected to be publicly available next week.
adams and brad lander
Barry Williams/for New York Daily News Mayor Adams and New York City Comptroller Brad Lander. (Barry Williams/for New York Daily News)
“He is saying that after the deadline he will announce — and that it is not just an exploratory committee,” said one of the sources who spoke directly to Lander about his plans.
While Lander intends to announce his run for mayor, the source said he also revealed a slight hedge: If winning City Hall begins to seem improbable, he could revert to mounting a re-election bid for comptroller.
A spokeswoman for Lander declined to comment, but referred The News to remarks he recently made to radio host Brian Lehrer on WNYC.
“It’s something I’m thinking really seriously about,” Lander told Lehrer last month. “I have not made any decisions, and I’ll be happy to come back on and talk to you more about it when I have.”
Adams, a moderate and incumbent, is now widely viewed as vulnerable. He and his team are facing multiple investigations on the federal, state and local levels, and his approval ratings have tanked, according to recent polling.
Those factors have led Stringer and Myrie to announce that they are exploring City Hall runs, as well as to speculation that others might jump into the primary fray, including Lander, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state Sen. Jessica Ramos.
Since becoming comptroller, Lander has been a target of the mayor, who has publicly ridiculed the way he speaks, but has remained a favorite of progressives, many of whom are hoping that he runs.
Before his current stint overseeing the city’s finances, Lander served as a City Council member representing Park Slope in Brooklyn.
Aside from the one source who spoke directly to Lander, three others confirmed the same general contours of his thinking, but with some slight variations.
A second source said that, based on a recent conversation with Lander, the Brooklyn Dem was still considering the option of announcing he’s exploring a run — rather than simply saying he’s running and leaving it at that.
Either way, the source said: “He’s going to announce in the next week or two.”
Other politicos have speculated Lander might announce a run in November or December — after the presidential election has concluded.
But progressive allies who spoke under the condition of anonymity are urging him to step up his timetable.
“You can’t start in November and start from scratch then,” one said. “You gotta go big or go home.”
Another said Lander needs “to start convincing people he’s really doing it.”
“It’s not going to get easier in 2029,” that source said, referring to the following mayoral election cycle. “He understands that this is his best chance to become mayor.”
