After indictment, NYC Mayor Eric Adams responds to calls for him to resign: “I need to reign”

By Kristie Keleshian and Jenna DeAngelis

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    NEW YORK (WCBS) — Just two days after pleading not guilty to federal corruption charges, New York City Mayor Eric Adams is focusing on faith.

Last Thursday, the mayor was indicted on federal corruption charges including bribery and conspiracy. A 57-page indictment alleges he solicited illegal campaign donations from foreign nationals. Adams pleaded not guilty Friday.

The mayor dug in his heels Sunday and reaffirmed he is not resigning at two appearances at houses of worship.

Adams leaned on his faith and faith leaders on the heels of his historic indictment.

“Sometimes you have to let go and let God,” Adams told parishioners at Emmanuel Presbyterian Reformed Church in the Bronx.

Parishioners and faith leaders in the Bronx remained neutral on their support for the mayor.

“It’s not a question of supporting him. It’s a question of praying for him as a church,” said Rev. Dr. Yaw Frimpong-Manso, with Emmanuel Presbyterian Reformed Church.

Later at Mount Sinai United Christian Church on Staten Island, he said, “No one wants to go through this. No one wants to deal with what I am dealing with right now. No one.”

“We unapologetically support his right to due process,” said Bishop Victor Brown, of Mount Sinai United Christian Church.

Rev. Al Sharpton was among the faith leaders showing support for Adams during a rally with the National Action Network on Saturday.

“I’ve known Eric Adams 35 years. I’ve never known him to have any leanings toward criminality. He deserves due process,” Sharpton said.

The Sunday Service stops weren’t the mayor’s only visits to houses of worship over the weekend. On Saturday, he visited Greater Allen A.M.E. Cathedral in Jamaica, Queens, and a gospel music event in the Bronx. The mayor says putting his focus on the church is nothing new.

“I am more in my foundation of my faith than I’ve ever been in my life,” Adams said.

Adams continued to stress Sunday that he has no plans to resign.

“So you hear the small number of loud people saying, ‘Well, he should step down.’ No, I’m gonna step up. I’m gonna step up,” Adams said in the Bronx.

He added, “When people say, ‘You need to resign,’ I say, ‘I need to reign.'”

On Sunday, when asked what his message is to those who have been telling him to step down, Adams said, “To watch me.”

He continued, “They’re the same people, January 1, 2022, were saying the same thing, that’s the same list of people, but we have been able to ignore their commentary and say their noise is not going to get in the way of the numbers, and the numbers show we have moved this city forward.”

Despite calls for his resignation, he says he’s not shifting focus.

“While the attorneys handle the due process, I’m going to handle the management of the city,” he said.

Should the mayor step down, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams would replace him until a special election is held. That’s something Williams said Sunday that he’s ready to do.

“When you run for public advocate, part of it is knowing that if something happens, you have to step in. You don’t want that to happen because that means that something went wrong with city government,” he said.

He added, “I ran to be public advocate and so I’m very happy doing that. If something happened for any reason, we’re also prepared to step in to do the job that we were elected to do in all eventualities. But the main message is the continuity of government.”

Adams is expected to appear back in court Wednesday, where his attorney says he will be demanding evidence from the prosecution, in addition to asking the judge to throw the case out.

“The case may ultimately be one that Mayor Adams can win in the sense of … having a jury find him not guilty. But the idea that these charges are going to be dismissed out of whole cloth before the case gets to a jury is fantasyland,” said Hofstra University law professor James Sample.

Sample says corruption cases are hard to prove, but the feds wouldn’t bring the case if they didn’t feel strongly about the evidence.

“If the case turns into a simple ‘he said, she said’ and it’s really only Mayor Adams’ version versus one or two witnesses, then he’s got a real chance at winning,” Sample said. “I suspect there will be numerous cooperating witnesses, extensive documentary evidence and a very tall mountain for the mayor to climb.”

While Gov. Kathy Hochul has the power to remove Adams from office, she has not yet indicated if she plans to do so. The mayor said they are in communication.

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