Yang, Andrew (1975- )

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      The Post-Embarrassment Media Campaign of Andrew Yang

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      He once called himself the opposite of Trump. But he is another test of the theory that in politics, there’s no such thing as bad publicity.Years from now, when we look back on the history of pop-political interviewing, we may find it quaint that Sacha Baron Cohen had to disguise himself as Borat and Ali G in order to get public figures into uncomfortable situations.Turns out all you have to do is ask.At least that was the case with the New York mayoral candidate and media omnipresence Andrew Yang, who accepted a dangerous offer from the comedian Ziwe to appear on her self-named Showtime program.The invitation (announced in a tweet that appeared to include a still from an already completed interview) would give many political handlers heartburn. The three-week old “Ziwe,” based on the comedian’s online show “Baited With Ziwe,” is a crucible of cringe.But cringe, in many ways, has been what the Yang campaign runs on.In her interviews, Ziwe uses the persona of an extremely online interviewer fond of influencer-speak (everything, and everyone, is “iconic”) to set up productively uncomfortable questions about politics and culture. Her signature is to take a softball-question template (“Your favorite ____”), soak it in acid and surround it with mousetraps. She asked the author and celebrated New York grouch Fran Lebowitz, “What bothers you more: slow walkers or racism?”Sunday’s interview delivered. After a cheerful introduction by teleconference — Mr. Yang was, of course, an “icon” — Ziwe asked the candidate to name his four favorite billionaires. (His answer included Michael Bloomberg, whom the Democratic base considers less than iconic; Oprah; Michael Jordan; and a tie for fourth between the possible/potential billionaires LeBron James and the Rock.) His favorite subway stop? The punitive Times Square station.“What are your favorite racial stereotypes?” elicited a nervous laugh. “What can I say about Asians?” Mr. Yang said, one of the “MATH” caps made famous in his presidential campaign visible behind him. And when Mr. Yang said he was a fan of hip-hop, Ziwe asked his favorite Jay-Z song, a loaded question about a New York rapper for a candidate whose local cred has repeatedly been challenged.There was a pause. Finally, Mr. Yang offered up “Numb/Encore” (with the rock band Linkin Park), as well as the Kanye West “Watch the Throne” collaboration that he referred to as “Word in Paris.”And yet! There was reason for critics to think Mr. Yang had embarrassed himself and for supporters to think he had helped himself. You could watch the interview and see a naïve glad-hander in over his head or a gutsy good sport. And you might be right either way.This has been the pattern of the Yang campaign in the media, an endless cycle of gaffes and self-owns that have left him at or near the top of the polls despite a paucity of government experience and electoral wins. The Ziwe interview may not have even been the most mortifying Yang clip of the week, which also saw a video of him tossing brick after brick on a city basketball court.He tweeted his love of New York “bodegas” with a video of what looked like a capacious supermarket. He reminisced about waiting “in,” not “on,” line at a “NY restaurant,” Shake Shack. More seriously, he offended a gay Democratic club while seeking an endorsement and walked back an initial response to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that didn’t acknowledge violence against Palestinians.After every incident, he may or may not have gotten more formidable. But after every incident, he got more famous. Fame got him to the front of the pack and — despite repeated pronouncements that the latest immolation would end him — fame has kept him there.Mr. Yang was a mostly willing interviewee as Ziwe asked about topics ranging from racial stereotypes to his favorite subway station. (His answer: Times Square.)Showtime, via YouTubeNo American needs to be told that celebrity is a path to politics. We’ve had Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump; we may have Caitlyn Jenner and Matthew McConaughey. But Mr. Yang represents another advance in the celebritization of politics: He became a celebrity by running for president..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}The 2020 Democratic debates were a kind of TV serial, with passions and breakout characters (the quotable spiritual guide from the early episodes, the sweeps-month arc about the last-minute billionaire candidate) and a ravenous partisan audience. (To a lesser extent, cable-news exposure also helps candidates like Maya Wiley, whose assets include mediagenic appearances on MSNBC as much as her government and civil-rights work.)His business record was questionable. His political record was sparse. But as Alex Pareene put it in The New Republic, he became “a television character that people have not only heard of but actually like.” On the debate stage, on outlets like the Joe Rogan podcast and as a CNN commentator, he found a following for his advocacy of a universal basic income and his one-liners, like “The opposite of Donald Trump is an Asian man who likes math.”Mr. Yang has plenty of differences from the reality-TV star he ran to replace. But as a mayoral candidate, he is also testing the theory that in today’s politics, there is no such thing as bad publicity. Mr. Trump’s 2016 campaign was a series of detonations that, as a seminal tweet put it, people were confident “ol Donny Trump” would never wriggle his way out of — all of which cemented his place as the lead of the antihero drama.If Mr. Yang’s New York run is more cringe sitcom in genre, we can’t rule out that pattern’s repeating. More than once, people have compared him with Michael Scott of “The Office,” the clueless enthusiast and tourist who praised his favorite authentic New York pizza slice, from Sbarro.But here’s the thing: Michael Scott somehow managed to get and keep that managerial job at Dunder Mifflin. And people happily watched his character for years. Would you want him to be mayor of Scranton, much less the largest city in America? Maybe not. But beyond the vicarious laughs over his embarrassments, viewers responded to his indomitable, unshameable optimism. (Mr. Yang’s own campaign even embraced the comparison last week, tweeting a video of him sinking a basket, with the quote, “‘You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. – Wayne Gretzky’ – Michael Scott.”)And so the character arc of Andrew Yang continues, moment after meme, through one surefire-campaign-killer after another. (The Ziwe offer last week delighted anti-Yang Twitter, which imagined her ending him.) Maybe those incidents will, cumulatively, leave him coming up short.But for now, they are generating him outsized media attention (of which this piece is an example) and putting his name at the top of the credits. It is the sort of feeding frenzy in which it is not always clear who is being eaten and who is doing the eating. One person’s bait, these days, is another person’s meal. More

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      Top N.Y.C. Mayoral Hopefuls Under Fire as Primary Nears

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      With less than a month before the June 22 primary, Democratic candidates are focusing on the perceived front-runners, Eric Adams and Andrew Yang, in a bid to shift momentum.First came the fevered pitch of the warm-up speeches and the catchy campaign jingle, in English and Spanish, which rang through the air at the park just south of City Hall. The New York City mayor’s race was approaching a pivotal moment, and Eric Adams, one of the top candidates, seemed prepared to seize it.Mr. Adams proclaimed his readiness for a brutal final stretch of the mayoral primary — and, in ways implicit and overt, proceeded to rip into the track record of Andrew Yang, his chief rival, as he sketched out his own vision for the city.Just a day earlier, Mr. Yang, whose campaign has been typified by congeniality and optimism, lashed out at Mr. Adams’s fund-raising practices, in his most direct criticism of an opponent to date.Other attacks came from Scott M. Stringer, the city comptroller, who laced into both Mr. Adams and Mr. Yang for currying favor from “hedge-fund billionaires,” and challenged Mr. Yang over education issues. And Maya D. Wiley held a news conference last week to skewer Mr. Yang over his knowledge of policing matters.Four weeks before the June 22 Democratic primary that will almost certainly determine New York City’s next mayor, the race is approximating a traditional campaign brawl after months of somewhat passive but decorous exchanges over video forums.For much of the race, Mr. Yang, the former presidential candidate, has led the sparse public polling, and most of the broadsides from other candidates have been aimed at him. Mr. Yang, whose campaign has been typified by congeniality and optimism, has lashed out at Mr. Adams’s fund-raising practices.Sara Naomi Lewkowicz for The New York TimesBut Mr. Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, has increasingly appeared to occupy at least as much of his rivals’ head space — a reflection of his strength in the contest.“You don’t aim at what’s weak, you aim at what’s strong,” said Donovan Richards, the Queens borough president who is supporting Mr. Adams, ahead of his City Hall rally. “We’re moving into the final stretch and the race will intensify more, but clearly he’s resonating.”The next mayor of New York will play a central role in determining how the nation’s largest city recovers from the pandemic and overlapping crises concerning the economy, inequality and public safety. Aware of those stakes, the candidates are racing to press their cases, bombarding voters with flurries of campaign literature, accelerating in-person campaign schedules and sharpening their contrasts with each other.Since Jan. 1, there has been more than $24 million in Democratic spending in the mayor’s race, according to AdImpact, an advertising tracking firm, including a flood of outside spending on behalf of several of the candidates. A number of the contenders still have significant war chests available to fuel a barrage of ads through the end of the race.According to political strategists, advisers to the candidates and the public polling available, Mr. Yang and Mr. Adams are generally seen as the front-runners, but another candidate could still surge, even at this late stage.Kathryn Garcia, the former sanitation commissioner, is working to build momentum after endorsements from the editorial boards of The New York Times and The New York Daily News, and she has shown some traction in the limited available polling.Maya Wiley, center, picked up an endorsement from Representative Hakeem Jeffries as key influencers in the race choose sides.Gabriela Bhaskar for The New York TimesMs. Wiley, who delivered an assertive debate performance, released her second ad last week, and is seeking to build a coalition that includes Black voters and white progressives. She is competing with Dianne Morales, a former nonprofit executive, to emerge as the left-wing standard-bearer in the race, a position Mr. Stringer had hoped to occupy.An accusation that Mr. Stringer made unwanted sexual advances during a 2001 campaign, which he denies, has derailed that ambition, with several key left-leaning supporters rescinding their endorsements. For the last fund-raising period, he raised less than the seven other leading candidates, though his campaign noted that the haul was bigger than that of the preceding two-month period.Mr. Stringer remains well-funded, is advertising extensively and has the support of some powerful unions. He has also received air cover from a super PAC associated with teachers’ unions. Raymond J. McGuire, a former Citi executive, and Shaun Donovan, the former federal housing secretary, are also well-funded candidates with active campaign schedules and the support of super PACs who are looking for ways to break out. In the last fund-raising period, Mr. McGuire, Mr. Yang and Mr. Adams appeared to pull in the most money, though Ms. Wiley and Ms. Garcia in particular showed growth compared with the previous period.The arrival of ranked-choice voting in New York City, in which voters can rank up to five candidates in order of preference, has also injected a measure of significant uncertainty into the contest — and on the ground, there are signs that many voters have not yet made decisions about their first choices, much less the rest of their ballots.There are two more official Democratic debates scheduled — one is for “leading contenders” — that may help voters decide, though the candidates are frustrated that the June 2 matchup is slated to be virtual. And in the final weeks, key influencers like Representative Hakeem Jeffries, who endorsed Ms. Wiley, are now choosing sides.On Sunday, Representative Adriano Espaillat, a prominent Dominican-American lawmaker who pulled his endorsement of Mr. Stringer, announced his support for Mr. Adams — a decision that was being closely watched as the battle for Latino voters intensifies. Scott Stringer, who faces an accusation of unwanted sexual advances, which he denies, remains well-funded and has the support of some powerful unions. James Estrin/The New York TimesOther high-profile Democrats are weighing how best to use their influence as the four-week countdown arrives. State Senator John C. Liu of Queens, an influential voice in New York Asian-American politics, is expected to endorse Mr. Yang on Monday, according to a person familiar with the matter. Representative Grace Meng, the highest-ranking Asian-American elected official in New York, also backed Mr. Yang earlier this month.“I was leaning toward not endorsing, I’m leaning more toward it now,” said Jumaane D. Williams, the public advocate.“If I do endorse it would be a combination of where I think I ideologically align and who I think shouldn’t run the city,” or, he added, “who I’d have concerns about running the city.”.css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}He declined to specify which candidates were stoking those worries. But some on the left oppose Mr. Yang and Mr. Adams over matters including their relatively moderate approaches to policing and dealings with the business community. (Mr. Williams has, however, spoken highly of Mr. Adams’s focus on combating gun violence.)Earlier this month, Mr. Yang drew a public rebuke from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York over a tweet of unqualified support for Israel amid violence in the region. He later offered a more modulated statement.More broadly, Mr. Yang continues to face sharp criticism from rivals over his grasp of city government. On Thursday, for instance, he struggled to navigate, among other issues, a question about a statute that shielded the disciplinary records of police officers, one that has been a focus of debate in recent years and was repealed.“Can you imagine a woman running to be the mayor of the largest city in the nation, not actually knowing or understanding how the Police Department works?” Ms. Wiley said on Friday. “The fact that any of us, with one of the major issues in this race, doesn’t actually understand what the conversation has been in this city is one that really should cause us to ask about qualification.”Chris Coffey, Mr. Yang’s co-campaign manager, argued that Mr. Yang was knowledgeable about the substance of the core issues in the race.“If they’re looking for a mayor who is kind of the most insider-y person and knows the debt limit for the M.T.A., then maybe Andrew’s not going to be their candidate,” he said at a news briefing. “Andrew is someone who has a big vision for cash relief, for getting schools open and for bringing New York back and making it more safe.”Mr. Adams, for his part, has found himself under fire from Mr. Yang and others following a New York Times report about how he mixed money and political ambitions. His campaign has denied wrongdoing and demanded an investigation into Mr. Yang’s fund-raising.Mr. Adams, a former police officer who challenged issues of police misconduct from within the system, is running on a message focused on combating inequality and racial injustice, and above all else, promoting public safety.There are signs that the spike in shootings and unsettling episodes of violence on the subway in recent weeks have emerged as one of the most consequential, and divisive, matters in the contest.Mr. Adams, who says he was once a victim of police violence, bristles at the idea that his position on public safety is in conflict with support for reining in police abuse.“You can critique me on a lot of things, but the audacity of some people to say, ‘He has not been a leading voice on stop-and-frisk,’” Mr. Adams said at a Harlem-area rally on Saturday, shortly after Ms. Wiley criticized him on that very issue at a debate. “Where have you been? If you don’t know my history on that issue, then something is wrong with you.”Emma G. Fitzsimmons More

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      Adams Gets a Major Endorsement: 5 Takeaways From Mayor’s Race

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      Representative Adriano Espaillat, who had backed Scott Stringer, switched to supporting Eric Adams, while Andrew Yang had a rocky week on the campaign trail.With just over four weeks left before the New York mayoral primary — and with in-person early voting set to begin on June 12 — the leading Democratic candidates are racing to distinguish themselves in an election that has so far remained relatively static, according to the limited polling available.The two front-runners, Andrew Yang and Eric Adams, both made news this week, but for different reasons: Mr. Yang, a former presidential hopeful, made a series of gaffes that seemed to highlight one of his critics’ most frequent complaints — that he has parachuted into the mayor’s race with little knowledge of the city and no government experience.Meanwhile, Mr. Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, continued to gain steam, picking up a critical endorsement from one of the city’s most powerful Latino politicians and gaining the lead in another public poll.Adams gets second dibs on an influential endorsementIn the messy aftermath of Jean Kim’s sexual harassment allegations against Scott M. Stringer, the city comptroller and a leading mayoral candidate, Representative Adriano Espaillat, the most powerful Dominican-American politician in New York City, signed a terse joint statement rescinding his endorsement of Mr. Stringer.A scramble ensued, with several leading candidates courting Mr. Espaillat for his endorsement — a rush that ended Sunday when Mr. Adams traveled to Washington Heights, in the heart of Mr. Espaillat’s district, to receive the congressman’s formal embrace.Mr. Espaillat said he got into politics after witnessing someone shot in the head on a city street. Gun violence is again on the rise in New York City, and Mr. Espaillat said he is endorsing Mr. Adams, a former police captain, because “we don’t want that happening again.”Mr. Espaillat has helped several acolytes win office, including, most recently, his former campaign staffer Oswald Feliz, who won a competitive race for the Bronx City Council seat once occupied by Representative Ritchie Torres.“For Eric, the Espaillat endorsement, this is better than mangú,” said Eli Valentin, a political analyst for Univision, referring to the Dominican dish of mashed plantains. “I don’t think there’s anyone else among Latinos that has that influence within the Latino electorate.”The Latino vote is estimated to make up 20 percent of the Democratic primary vote, Mr. Valentin said. The congressman’s backing is expected to matter more than that of many other powerful city politicians, in part because it comes with Mr. Espaillat’s team of loyal supporters who can help get out the vote.“At a time when the machine style of politics has been waning, Mr. Espaillat has built a machine of his own that can move votes,” said John DeSio, who once directed communications for the Bronx borough president, Ruben Diaz Jr.Andrew Yang’s plan for city control of the subways has been criticized as lacking detail.Sara Naomi Lewkowicz for The New York TimesAndrew Yang’s rough weekMr. Yang has characterized himself as a political outsider, someone who will not be beholden to special interests and who would be open to new ways of getting things done. Although he has been leading in many polls, that outsider image has inspired criticism that he doesn’t know enough about New York to be mayor.That critique came into focus last week when Mr. Yang fumbled or didn’t know the answers to several questions about city government and policy.On Thursday, Julia Marsh, a reporter from The New York Post, asked if he agreed with last year’s repeal of 50-a, a law that shielded the disciplinary records of police officers from public view.“The repeal of 50-a?” Mr. Yang asked.“Do you know what 50-a is?” Ms. Marsh asked.Mr. Yang stumbled over an incorrect response before Edwin Raymond, a New York Police Department lieutenant who is running for the City Council, explained the law.On the same day, Mr. Yang said during a forum on homelessness that it would be “extraordinarily helpful” to “have specific shelters for victims of domestic violence who are often fleeing from an abusive partner and is a distinct population with distinct needs.”The moderator, the NY1 anchor Courtney Gross, quickly pointed out that there are already a number of domestic violence shelters in the city, but that the issue has been capacity.“Oh, no, of course they do exist,” Mr. Yang said.Earlier in the week, Mr. Yang was also criticized for his proposal for the city to take control of the subway and bus system, which some saw as being light on details.Chris Coffey, Mr. Yang’s co-campaign manager, said Mr. Yang misspoke when addressing domestic violence shelters and that he had been briefed on the issues around 50-a several times. Mr. Coffey said his candidate understood the issues, but that doesn’t mean he knows “every piece of terminology or the debt limit for the M.T.A.”Mr. Yang’s opponents pounced on the missteps.“Andrew Yang’s ignorance of critical issues facing our city isn’t just insulting — it’s dangerous,” said Mr. Stringer, whose campaign also trolled Mr. Yang with a video of the perceived gaffes.How ranked-choice voting could play outUnder ranked-choice voting, winning the most votes in the first round does not necessarily mean a candidate will win the election — contenders near the top could still triumph if they get more second- and third-choice votes than the first-round winner.That could conceivably happen in next month’s Democratic primary. A new poll by Public Opinion Strategies for the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, shows how the winner could be determined in 11 rounds with surprising twists and turns.Ranked-choice voting will allow New Yorkers to rank up to five mayoral candidates in order of preference. The Board of Elections will eliminate the last-place finisher among the candidates. If a voter’s first choice was eliminated, then their second choice vote will be counted. And so on until a winner emerges.In the poll, Mr. Yang received the most votes in the first round, at 22 percent, followed closely by Mr. Adams. But once voters’ ranked choices were tallied, and candidates with less support were cut, Mr. Adams came out on top with 52 percent of votes, compared with 48 percent for Mr. Yang.Maya Wiley, a former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, finished third, picking up support from voters who liked Kathryn Garcia, the city’s former sanitation commissioner, and Dianne Morales, a former nonprofit executive..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Once Ms. Wiley was cut in the 10th round, more of her supporters listed Mr. Adams higher on their ballot than Mr. Yang, helping Mr. Adams come out on top.The poll found other interesting trends. Mr. Yang polls best among men, moderate and younger Democrats and Asian voters. Voters with more education tended to support Ms. Garcia, and more liberal voters tended to back Ms. Wiley. Black, conservative and Brooklyn voters liked Mr. Adams. And Mr. Stringer attracted support from older women.Donovan PAC leads in ad spending. But to what end?For $5.5 million, one could buy a townhouse in Greenwich Village, a five-bedroom mansion in Sag Harbor or a swath of TV advertising for a mayoral candidate now polling in the single digits.New Start N.Y.C., a super PAC supporting Shaun Donovan’s campaign, has spent more on T.V., radio and online advertising than any other entity in the mayor’s race, according to Ad Impact, an advertising analytics firm. That is twice as much as the next-highest spender, Mr. Stringer’s campaign.Michael Donovan, the candidate’s father and the primary funder of the super PAC, didn’t respond to requests for comment. Nor did Brittany Wise, the super PAC’s treasurer. Since February, Michael Donovan has pumped $6.8 million into the super PAC supporting his son. All other contributors to the PAC combined have put in about $100,000.The money has gone toward ads like “Fix the Mess,” which, like Mr. Donovan’s campaign, touts the former federal housing secretary and budget director’s work in the Obama administration.Mr. Donovan has an impressive governmental résumé and working relationships with the most powerful elected officials in the country, according to Kenneth Sherrill, a professor of political science at Hunter College. But, Mr. Sherrill said, candidates with the best résumés are often not the best campaigners — and all the money in the world can’t necessarily change that.“You can rattle off all kinds of qualifications, but we don’t choose mayor by competitive examination,” Mr. Sherrill said, adding, “High-spending candidates rarely win.”McGuire puts $1 million into campaign as poll numbers lagMr. Donovan is not the only candidate with ample resources to spend but arguably little of substance to show for it, according to the latest fund-raising numbers released by the city’s campaign finance board last week.No one raised more money in the last two months than Raymond J. McGuire, a former Citigroup executive, who brought in $2.4 million from the likes of the hedge fund managers Paul Tudor Jones and Daniel Loeb. Mr. McGuire put his own money where his mouth is, too, pumping $1 million into his campaign on May 6. Mr. McGuire also lent his campaign $2 million this month.Even without that personal donation, he would have raised about as much as the $1.37 million garnered by Mr. Yang, and more than the $878,000 raised by Mr. Adams or the $661,000 that Ms. Garcia raised.The latter three contenders are participating in the city’s matching funds program, which rewards campaigns that raise small donations from New York City residents. It is not yet clear how much in matching funds they will receive this round. Mr. McGuire is not participating in the program and is not subject to its stricter fund-raising limits. His campaign has also spent more than those of his competitors.But he remains toward the back of the pack.In the recent public poll by Public Opinion Strategies, he was the first choice of only 6 percent of potential Democratic primary voters.His spokeswoman, Lupe Todd-Medina, argued that Mr. McGuire does in fact have much to show from that spending: Polls are often inaccurate, she said particularly when polling communities of color. And she noted that Mr. McGuire had no political experience before jumping into the mayor’s race.“In this short period of time, without selling gimmicky tricks to New Yorkers, Ray has created widespread support for his comprehensive plan for the greatest, most inclusive economic comeback this city has ever seen,” Ms. Todd-Medina said. More

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      New York City Mayor’s Race Intensifies

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      [Want to get New York Today by email? Here’s the sign-up.]It’s Monday. Weather: Today will be mostly cloudy with a high in the mid-60s before dipping into the high 50s tonight. Alternate-side parking: In effect until next Monday (Memorial Day). Photographs by James Estrin/The New York Times, Eduardo Munoz/Reuters, Bebeto Matthews/Associated Press, Brendan Mcdermid/Reuters, Laylah Amatullah Barrayn for The New York Times and Victor J. Blue for The New York TimesLess than a month before the June primary election, the intensity of the New York City mayor’s race is ratcheting up. Passive exchanges between the contenders over Zoom are giving way to sharp attacks as candidates accelerate their campaign schedules and bombard voters with literature.And many of the candidates appear to be taking aim at the two Democrats perceived to be leading the race: Andrew Yang and Eric Adams.[Candidates still have significant war chests available to fuel a barrage of ads through the end of the race.]The attacksScott M. Stringer, the city comptroller, recently criticized Mr. Adams and Mr. Yang, saying they were currying favor from “hedge fund billionaires.” Maya D. Wiley, a civil rights lawyer who served as counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, held a news conference last week to attack Mr. Yang’s knowledge of policing matters.“Can you imagine a woman running to be the mayor of the largest city in the nation, not actually knowing or understanding how the Police Department works?” Ms. Wiley said.Mr. Yang joined other candidates in criticizing Mr. Adams following a New York Times report about how he mixed money and political ambitions. Mr. Adams has also criticized Mr. Yang at campaign events recently.The uncertaintyWhile Mr. Adams and Mr. Yang are seen as front-runners, there are reasons to believe the other candidates can gain momentum in the final weeks.Public polling has been sparse. Ranked-choice voting, in which voters can rank up to five candidates in order of preference, has changed the dynamics of the race. And there are signs that many voters have not yet made up their minds about even their first choices.Looking aheadStill to come are two more Democratic debates that may help voters decide. Some high-profile party leaders have also yet to endorse a candidate.“I was leaning toward not endorsing, I’m leaning more toward it now,” said Jumaane D. Williams, the public advocate. “If I do endorse it would be a combination of where I think I ideologically align and who I think shouldn’t run the city,” or, he added, “who I’d have concerns about running the city.”From The TimesAdams Gets Boost With Latino Voters: 5 Takeaways From Mayor’s Race2 Dead and 12 Wounded in House Party Shooting in New Jersey, Police Say‘It’s Not Enough’: Living Through a Pandemic on $100 a WeekSome Famous Gems Get a New SettingWant more news? Check out our full coverage.The Mini Crossword: Here is today’s puzzle.What we’re readingA woman died after falling from a rooftop during a party in the East Village, prompting calls for more oversight of unsafe rooftop gatherings. [ABC 7]Twenty-nine people were shot this weekend across New York City. [N.Y. Post]A woman abandoned her 7-month-old baby at a bodega in Brooklyn, before turning herself into the police. [Daily News]And finally: Why being a Knicks fan hurts so goodThe Times’s Scott Cacciola and Sopan Deb write:Ashley Nicole Moss did not have much of a choice when she was growing up. Her father, Jeff, was a Knicks fan, which meant that she was a Knicks fan, too.For part of her childhood in Brooklyn and Queens, Moss, 27, found that rooting for the Knicks was not such a horrible thing. When she was especially young, the team often made the playoffs and even advanced to the N.B.A. finals in 1999, which she said was among her earliest memories as a fan. So she was unprepared for the subsequent two decades, which were largely a wilderness of losing and dysfunction, of failed hopes and shattered dreams..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}“It’s been a lot of disappointment and a lot of frustration,” said Moss, who is a co-host of “KnicksFanTV” on YouTube.All of which has made this season — this glorious season — so much more special for fans like Moss. The Knicks have engineered a comeback story, sending their long-suffering fans into a fervor. While the Nets, over in Brooklyn, are brimming with high-priced talent as a championship favorite, the Knicks have gone from punchline to playoff contender in the space of several thrilling months.“God forbid, if we win, we are going to burn this city down,” said Daniel Baker, a Knicks fan more popularly known as Desus Nice on the late-night comedy show “Desus & Mero.”“Sorry, I’m just letting you all know,” he added.The Knicks, with the second-lowest payroll in the league and a roster almost devoid of stars, will open their first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks are seeded fourth in the Eastern Conference after finishing with a 41-31 record in the regular season.It’s Monday — take a shot.Metropolitan Diary: BoardingDear Diary:My fiancé and I rode our bikes to Manhattan from Brooklyn last summer to meet some friends for an outdoor restaurant dinner.As dinner ended, it began to rain — hard. We couldn’t bike back home, so we walked through the downpour to the closest train station.Drenched, we carried our bikes down to the platform, where we saw a group of teenagers. They were a little rowdy but harmless and waiting for an uptown train, which pulled in just as the lights of the train we were waiting for started to shine down the tunnel.Just then, without the teenagers noticing, a skateboard that belonged to one of them slipped and rolled onto the tracks. As the uptown train’s doors opened, the board’s owner turned around to grab it, only to see it where it had fallen with a train bearing down.The teen hesitated. He was clearly considering going onto the tracks as his friends held open the doors and yelled at him to leave the board where it was.With only seconds to spare, a transit worker who had witnessed the entire turn of events yelled from across the way and pulled out a walkie-talkie. The downtown train screeched to a halt a few feet in front of the skateboard.The conductor put on a neon vest, swung open the train’s front door and hopped down onto the tracks. He grabbed the skateboard and handed it to the boy, who sprinted to the uptown train. His friends were still pushing against the closing doors.— Elizabeth Blue GuessNew York Today is published weekdays around 6 a.m. Sign up here to get it by email. You can also find it at nytoday.com.What would you like to see more (or less) of? Email us: nytoday@nytimes.com. More

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      Mapping New York City’s Mayoral Campaign Money

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      Andrew Yang, who is widely regarded as a frontrunner in the crowded primary race for New York City mayor, has raised money from more New Yorkers than any other leading Democratic candidate, according to campaign finance documents released on Friday. Who has the most donors in New York City? Donors 1. Andrew Yang 11,421 2. […] More

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      How Andrew Yang Won Over Orthodox Brooklyn

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      A slew of influential ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders endorsed Mr. Yang, motivated by one overriding issue: “Yeshivas, yeshivas, yeshivas.”The campaign material began appearing in Yiddish earlier than usual this year, declaring that the best defense that ultra-Orthodox Jews in New York City could have against a hostile world would be to elect Andrew Yang as mayor.One ad, invoking a passage from the Babylonian Talmud, told voters that Mr. Yang was the sort of honest man who is loved by God, not someone “who says one thing with his mouth but means another in his heart.”Another ad cast the choice in existential terms, urging people to vote for Mr. Yang because he alone supports “our right to educate our children according to our fundamentals” and “values our way of life.”With the June 22 Democratic mayoral primary roughly a month away, Mr. Yang, a former 2020 presidential candidate, has been able to push to the top of the contest through a potent mix of celebrity, optimism and tireless outreach, both in person and on social media.As he did in his presidential candidacy, which had support from a broad spectrum of disaffected voters, Mr. Yang has been able to widen his appeal in New York, attracting a significant following from influential ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders.There are at least 500,000 Orthodox Jews in the New York area, by some estimates, and the endorsement of ultra-Orthodox leaders is highly coveted because the community is seen as a formidable voting bloc, especially in a race that has so far not energized the electorate.The endorsement of ultra-Orthodox leaders is highly coveted because the community is seen as a formidable voting bloc.James Estrin/The New York TimesThe key for Mr. Yang was his early declaration that he intended to take a laissez-faire attitude toward Hasidic yeshivas, the private schools to which almost all ultra-Orthodox families send their sons, as well as toward the schools where they educate their daughters.The yeshiva system has faced intense criticism over the failure of some schools to provide a basic secular education. Some also operated secretly during the pandemic, in violation of public health rules.“We shouldn’t interfere with their religious and parental choice as long as the outcomes are good,” he told The Forward, a Jewish publication, in February.That approach has helped him undercut rivals, particularly the Brooklyn borough president, Eric Adams, a former state senator who has a long working relationship with the Orthodox community.In the 2013 Democratic mayoral primary, Hasidic groups in Borough Park, Brooklyn, backed Bill de Blasio, who had once represented the area in the City Council.But in the last two presidential elections, neighborhoods with large ultra-Orthodox populations were islands of deep red in overwhelmingly blue Brooklyn. Some precincts in Borough Park voted for President Donald J. Trump by more than 90 percent in 2020.It remains to be seen how much influence Hasidic leaders will have in the Democratic primary; most ultra-Orthodox Jews support the Republican Party, according to a study published last week by the Pew Research Center, and the 2020 presidential election results in Orthodox Brooklyn seem to bear that out.Nonetheless, for Hasidic leaders, the decision to endorse a newcomer like Mr. Yang over a known quantity like Mr. Adams highlights their anxiety after a yearslong series of calamitous events: a devastating pandemic, a rise in anti-Semitic hate crimes and a long history of clashes with secular authorities over issues like social distancing, measles outbreaks and high school curriculums.Mr. Yang comes to city politics without the baggage of those past clashes. Capitalizing on that blank slate, he has won over allies with well-honed rhetoric on religious freedom, a sophisticated messaging campaign in Yiddish media and a willingness to adopt the hands-off approach favored by Hasidic leaders.“The most burning issue is yeshivas,” said Alexander Rapaport, a community leader who has organized voter registration drives in Borough Park in the run-up to the primary. “It’s not like something else is issue No. 2. Everything else is issue No. 25. The first 24 issues are yeshivas, yeshivas, yeshivas.”Alexander Rapaport, a community leader in Borough Park, said that for many voters, where candidates stood on yeshivas was a defining issue. Kevin Hagen for The New York TimesIn past elections, debates over yeshivas often centered on the allocation of public funds to the religious schools, which receive millions of federal, state and city dollars through education and child care programs.But the political conversation changed after a 2015 legal complaint filed by yeshiva graduates who said they had been given little secular education. That complaint led the city to open an inquiry that found that 26 of 28 yeshivas that were investigated were not meeting a legal requirement to provide education “substantially equivalent” to that provided in city public schools.No action was taken, but it prompted a citywide dialogue that cut to the heart of the yeshiva’s role in Hasidic society and profoundly insulted many in the community. There are more than 50,000 students in Hasidic schools in New York City, according to a 2017 report by Young Advocates for Fair Education, an ultra-Orthodox advocacy group.“The perceived threat to the autonomy of the yeshivas is greater now than it ever has been in part because there are critics from within the community publicizing what they see as the problems with the yeshiva system in a way that hasn’t happened before,” said Nathaniel Deutsch, a professor at University of California, Santa Cruz.Mr. Yang’s approach to the community was on full display at a recent event in Midwood, Brooklyn, where he received the endorsement of two local politicians, Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein and Councilman Kalman Yeger.Standing before a crowd of reporters, Mr. Yang vowed to fight anti-Semitism and told Hasidic voters they were part of the “beautiful mosaic” of New York City.But when asked by The New York Times about yeshivas, Mr. Yang stood quietly behind Mr. Eichenstein and Mr. Yeger as they heatedly defended the schools, attacked “so-called advocates” for reform and decried the city investigation.Mr. Yang appeared bewildered by their anger — at one point, Mr. Yeger accused members of the City Council of being “OK with our kids getting blown up” — and sought to calm tensions with a joke about the “high-value add” they made to his campaign.He then took the microphone and criticized the city for allowing investigators “to check for infractions of various kinds” in yeshivas. He said he would take a different approach as mayor..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}“To the extent that there are issues in individual schools, I think we have to come together with the community and say ‘Look, like, is there something we can do to help?’” Mr. Yang said.“When there are issues, the approach should be one of correction and collegiality rather than contentiousness and adversarialness,” he added. “Which, unfortunately I think, has been the dynamic that the city has engendered for far too long.”Mr. Yang has expressed a willingness to adopt a hands-off approach to yeshivas, winning over many Hasidic leaders.Dave Sanders for The New York TimesMr. Adams has also praised yeshivas, saying he was “genuinely impressed” by one of the schools investigated by the city when he visited in March. But he has stressed that they must meet city standards and seemed to favor intervention when they do not.“We have to ensure that these yeshivas — those that are failing, which is not all the yeshivas, but those that are failing — we have to ensure that they meet the minimum standards,” he recently told The New York Times.The endorsements for Mr. Yang have been notable for how early they arrived. Hasidic leaders tend to wait until polls have established a favorite so they can try to back the winner, said David M. Pollock, the public policy director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York.But the fact that ultra-Orthodox voters have voted as a bloc in the past does not mean they are a monolith, Mr. Pollock said.That has been especially clear at the local level. Even in 2013, when Mr. de Blasio won the Borough Park neighborhood, he did so only by a slight margin over William C. Thompson Jr., who beat him in other neighborhoods with large ultra-Orthodox populations.“The dynamic is not that there is one bloc vote, but that there are multiple political players who can deliver votes wholesale,” Mr. Pollock said. That can be especially potent in an election with ranked-choice voting, which this mayoral race is using for the first time.“If you’re not going to endorse someone as your No. 1, you can say, ‘You’ll be our No. 2,’” Mr. Pollock said. “That’s not bad if you can sway 6,000 votes.”Mr. Yang has sought to appeal to Hasidic voters on issues besides education, including support for the right of parents to choose a circumcision ritual, metzitzah b’peh, which is used by a minority of Hasidic mohels and has transmitted herpes to babies, and support for Israel in its conflict with Hamas.But yeshivas have become the dominant issue in part because they play a larger role in Hasidic society than schools do in the secular world, Professor Deutsch said.They employ many Hasidic people, act as a social network that connects people with jobs and marriage prospects and are a primary medium through which the community’s history, values and Yiddish language are passed on to new generations, he said.They are also an important lever of power for community leaders, who can threaten to bar a child from yeshiva to enforce standards of behavior on their parents, such as a prohibition on renting property to gentrifiers, Dr. Deutch said.Indeed, Yoel Greenfeld, a young man leaving prayers at a 24-hour synagogue in Borough Park, said he would vote for Mr. Yang in the general election because Hasidic leaders endorsed him. But he cannot vote in the primary because he is a registered Republican.“I’ll vote for Yang because the community here wants Yang, and when people say that they mean the leaders want Yang,” Mr. Greenfeld said. “My opinion is nothing compared to theirs. But personally, I want a Republican.” More

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      N.Y.C. Mayoral Candidates Don't Want Another Virtual Debate

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      Democratic candidates are pushing back on plans to have another online debate, saying New Yorkers “deserve and need to see the candidates debate in person.”Baseball fans are back at Yankee Stadium. Workers are returning to offices in Manhattan. Vaccinated New Yorkers are abandoning their masks as summer weather arrives in the city.But the second major Democratic debate for mayor will be virtual again.The first major debate, on May 13, was virtual, a format that some candidates and viewers found too restrictive. Now six of the Democratic candidates in the New York City mayor’s race are pushing back, sending a letter to the city’s Campaign Finance Board on Wednesday to demand that their next debate be held in person. It was signed by several front-runners, including Andrew Yang, the former presidential hopeful, and Maya Wiley, a former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio.“New Yorkers face one of the most consequential elections in history, and they deserve and need to see the candidates debate in person,” the letter said.The first major Republican debate, scheduled for next Wednesday, will be virtual; so will the second Democratic debate on June 2, which is being hosted by the local ABC station in New York.The board said the Democratic debate could not be held in person because of health protocols at ABC’s studio. One challenge, it said, is that there are at least eight Democrats who qualified for the debate and it would be difficult to space them apart.In the letter, the candidates said they care about safety as the city recovers from the pandemic, and there was a way to hold the debate safely in person, including social distancing, no studio audience and having the candidates get tested for Covid-19 within 48 hours before the debate.A spokeswoman for the station, Elita Adjei, said it was looking for a way to accommodate the candidates’ request and would “review our options and report back.”“The team here is working diligently to determine what’s possible for our station to ensure the safety of our employees and anyone entering the studio, which is always our number one priority,” she said. The letter from the candidates was also signed by Scott Stringer, the city comptroller; Kathryn Garcia, the city’s former sanitation commissioner; Raymond J. McGuire, a former Wall Street executive; and Shaun Donovan, the former federal housing secretary. Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, and Dianne Morales, a former nonprofit executive, did not sign the letter, though both of their campaigns expressed support for the idea of holding the debate in person. A spokesman for Mr. Adams, who is leading in the polls along with Mr. Yang, said Mr. Adams would prefer to debate in person, but supports whatever decision the Campaign Finance Board makes.In the Republican race, the candidates were also frustrated. Fernando Mateo, a restaurant operator and advocate for livery drivers, said virtual debates were inferior.“There’s nothing like being in the ring with your opponent,” he said. Curtis Sliwa, a founder of the Guardian Angels group that patrols the subway to monitor crime, suggested holding the first Republican debate on the roof of Chelsea Market above NY1’s television studios.“The fear, fright and hysteria over Covid-19 must end,” he said. “This may be the only issue that I and my Democratic opponents agree on.”During the first major Democratic debate, the eight candidates appeared in a grid of boxes that were reminiscent of “The Brady Bunch.” They were able to joust a bit while seated in front of their computers, though one of the hosts threatened to mute them for speaking out of turn..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Most of the candidates are fully vaccinated, and they want to dive into the issues — and attack their rivals — in person after a long winter of Zoom forums when coronavirus cases were raging. Mr. Yang and Ms. Wiley in particular appear eager to use their experience appearing on cable news to try to outshine their opponents.On Wednesday, New York lifted many capacity restrictions on businesses, and vaccinated people no longer have to wear masks, indoors or outdoors, in most circumstances. Some have called for the debates to be held outdoors as a compromise, though that could present logistical challenges for the hosts if, for instance, it rained. The website Gothamist solicited ideas for locations on Twitter. New Yorkers had plenty: the plaza at Lincoln Center, Delacorte Theater in Central Park where Shakespeare in the Park is held; the Open Streets corridor on 34th Avenue in Jackson Heights, Queens; and Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx. Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat in his second term, said he liked the idea of an outdoor debate and called it a “clever solution.” “I have the fondest memories as a proud Italian-American of being in the piazza in my grandfather’s hometown and many other places I’ve been in Italy and where there’s a real public square and people gather,” the mayor said on Wednesday.For now, the Campaign Finance Board said its top priority was keeping the candidates and organizers safe and healthy ahead of the June 22 primary. “A debate stage must accommodate all of the qualifying candidates (eight, so far) while adhering to safety guidelines,” Matt Sollars, a spokesman for the board, said in a statement. “The C.F.B. will do everything we can to support our partners in producing safe, engaging debates.”At least one group is planning to hold a candidates’ forum in person, on June 7: the 92nd Street Y. Safety precautions will be in place, including requiring attendees to wear face masks and get a temperature check. More

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      What’s the Next Mayor of New York’s One Big Idea?

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      We asked 10 candidates what they viewed as their central proposals. They named plans to offer cash relief to poor New Yorkers, child care grants and more.When Bill de Blasio ran for mayor of New York City in 2013, he was able to successfully distill his campaign into one big idea: creating universal prekindergarten. It reflected his larger theme of reducing inequality, and it was a promise he was able to deliver on not long after taking office.The large field of candidates running for mayor this year have plenty of ideas, from cash relief to property tax reform. But there is not, as of yet, one bold proposal that stands out in a similar way.“You’ve seen a stunning lack of original, big thinking from the candidates,” said Eric Phillips, a former press secretary for Mr. de Blasio.The mayor’s race is widely viewed as the most critical New York City election in a generation as voters choose a leader to guide the pandemic recovery. But weakened tax revenues could make it difficult to start ambitious new programs.Ahead of the June 22 primary, The New York Times asked eight leading Democrats and two Republicans to describe their one big idea for the city.Andrew Yang wants to offer some poor New Yorkers $2,000 per yearAndrew Yang, the former presidential hopeful, has perhaps the most memorable proposal: A pared-down version of the universal basic income plan that he championed during the 2020 presidential campaign.But instead of offering every American $1,000 a month, he proposes giving less than one-tenth of New Yorkers $2,000 on average per year.Still, Mr. Yang says his plan would be the “largest local cash relief effort in the country,” though he is still trying to figure out how exactly to pay for it.“We need to get cash in the hands of New Yorkers who need it most if we want our city to come back stronger than ever,” he said.The program would cost $1 billion per year, and Mr. Yang suggested that the city could offset some of that by closing tax loopholes for large institutions like Madison Square Garden and Columbia University.Eric Adams wants to create the ‘People’s Plan’Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, is proposing a “People’s Plan” with three components: tax credits for poor New Yorkers, free and low-cost child care for children under 3, and an app called MyCity to apply for benefits like food stamps.Under Mr. Adams’ tax credit plan, which he is calling NYC AID, poor families would receive about $3,000 per year.He also wants to give child care providers space in buildings owned by the city and offer developers incentives for charging them low rents.“Nothing holds back a woman’s opportunity to move up in business or to be employed than the lack of child care in this city,” Mr. Adams said. “That is devastating families.”The tax credit plan would cost about $1 billion a year. He said he would pay for it by cutting 3 to 5 percent of costs across city agencies, reducing the city work force, and increasing taxes on “ultramillionaires.”Scott Stringer wants to expand affordable housingScott M. Stringer, the city comptroller, has a plan to offer what he’s calling “universal affordable housing.”He wants to require new apartment buildings with more than 10 units to make 25 percent of them affordable to low- and middle-income families. And he wants to convert nearly 3,000 vacant lots owned by the city into affordable housing run by nonprofit groups.“The big real estate developers hate this plan — and for me, that’s a badge of honor,” Mr. Stringer said.His housing plan would cost about $1.6 billion per year. He would pay for it with a so-called pied-à-terre tax on luxury second homes and by reducing the need for homeless services, among other measures.Multiple candidates cited plans to strengthen child care and make it more affordable.Kirsten Luce for The New York TimesMaya Wiley wants to make child and elder care more affordableMaya Wiley, a former counsel to Mr. de Blasio, has a universal community care plan to offer 100,000 families a $5,000 annual grant to care for children and older people.The plan includes building “Community Care Centers” that would provide free child care, job training and activities for seniors, with a goal of reaching 300,000 New Yorkers in the first year.“As mayor, I will help us create a caring economy, where we invest in families through child care grants, so families can take care of themselves,” she said.Ms. Wiley wants to pay for the program, which would cost about $500 million, through local and federal funding, including by freezing the hiring of police and correction officers for two years.Dianne Morales wants to create a ‘community first responders department’Dianne Morales, a former nonprofit executive, has excited left-leaning voters with her plan to defund the police.Ms. Morales wants to cut the $6 billion annual police budget in half and spend some of that money to create a “Community First Responders Department” to address homelessness and mental health crises.Ms. Morales said that the police could not continue to “profile, criminalize, and kill Black people with abandon.”“We need to keep the police out of interactions where their presence is likely to do more harm than good,” she said.Kathryn Garcia wants to cut down on bureaucracyKathryn Garcia, the city’s former sanitation commissioner, says her overarching priority is to “make government work.”.css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-w739ur{margin:0 auto 5px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-w739ur{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-w739ur{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-9s9ecg{margin-bottom:15px;}.css-1jiwgt1{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;margin-bottom:1.25rem;}.css-8o2i8v{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-align-self:flex-end;-ms-flex-item-align:end;align-self:flex-end;}.css-8o2i8v p{margin-bottom:0;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-1rh1sk1{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-1rh1sk1 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-1rh1sk1 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1rh1sk1 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;text-decoration-color:#ccd9e3;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:visited{color:#333;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#ccc;text-decoration-color:#ccc;}.css-1rh1sk1 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}She wants to cut homelessness in half and make repairs to public housing, and she would reform the city’s permitting system for small businesses.Ms. Garcia said she thought some candidates were promising programs the city could not afford, and that others knew very little about procurement.“The truth is, the radical big idea that New Yorkers desperately want is simple: Cut the bureaucratic nonsense and actually make city government work equally for everyone,” she said.Ray McGuire wants to use a ‘comeback plan’ to create jobsRaymond J. McGuire, a former Wall Street executive, has proposed a “comeback plan” that includes subsidies, tax relief and a jobs program.His “job accelerator” would cover half the salary for workers for one year at small businesses that suffered during the pandemic. He also wants to work with state leaders to let small businesses keep a portion of the sales tax they collect for one year.“We have one shot to get this right,” Mr. McGuire said. “If we don’t succeed in putting New Yorkers back to work then no amount of subsidy or spending on social programs is going to make a dent on the catastrophic consequences of mass unemployment.”His plan would cost about $1.8 billion over two years. He would pay for it through federal stimulus funds and by possibly reversing some of Mr. de Blasio’s budget commitments and making other budget cuts.Shaun Donovan wants to create ‘15-minute neighborhoods’Shaun Donovan, the former federal housing secretary, has offered so many plans — roughly 200 pages of them — that he jokes that choosing a favorite is like choosing between his sons.His top priorities are “equity bonds” — giving $1,000 to every child, and up to $2,000 per year, to help close the wealth gap for poor families — and “15-minute neighborhoods,” where every New Yorker would have access to good schools, transit and parks within 15 minutes of their home.“Not all New York City neighborhoods are created equal, and many New Yorkers lack adequate access to basic necessities like fresh food, quality health care, and reliable transportation,” Mr. Donovan said.Mr. Donovan said the neighborhood plan would require zoning changes and tax incentives to support private investment. Transit upgrades would be paid for by so-called value capture on real estate development and a tax on marijuana sales. Curtis Sliwa wants to reform property taxesCurtis Sliwa, a founder of the Guardian Angels who is running as a Republican, wants to reform property taxes and use the money to hire more than 3,000 additional police officers.Like Mr. Yang, he wants to make institutions like Madison Square Garden pay more taxes. He also wants to cap property tax rates and assess properties at their actual fair market value, among other measures.The city’s method of calculating property taxes has long allowed owners of multimillion-dollar brownstones in Brooklyn and high-rise co-ops by Central Park to pay less in taxes than working-class homeowners in the South Bronx, relative to the value of their properties.“My comprehensive property tax reform plan will finally deliver a fair, transparent property tax system to New York City and will generate enough new revenue to fully re-fund our police,” he said.Fernando Mateo wants to achieve ‘universal teen employment’Fernando Mateo, a restaurant operator who is also running as a Republican, said his big idea was a voluntary year-round jobs program for teenagers, ages 14 to 18, called “Alpha Track.”Mr. Mateo said he dropped out of school at 14, and that he wanted to improve the drop-out rate and prevent teenagers from getting into trouble.“This is about getting them out of their community and exposing them to what New York is all about — exposing them to corporate America, city agencies and small businesses,” he said. 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