Eric Adams is out—and New York City’s mayoral race just got messier

With just 36 days before voters could have kicked him out themselves, New York City Mayor Eric Adams spared himself the humiliation. On Sunday, he announced he’s abandoning his campaign for a second term—a race he never stood a chance at winning.

In a nearly nine-minute video set to Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” Adams admitted there was no path to reelection and said he’d wrap up his rocky tenure at year’s end.

“Despite all we’ve achieved,” he said, “I cannot continue my reelection campaign.”

Rather than own his scandals—bribery allegations federal prosecutors dropped earlier this year after what looked like a quid pro quo with President Donald Trump, or the adviser caught trying to bribe a reporter last month—Adams blamed “continued media speculation” and the city’s Campaign Finance Board