The threat and subsequent politicization of antisemitism is playing a significant role in the 2025 mayoral campaign.
Mayor Eric Adams has claimed the "EndAntiSemitism" ballot line for himself in the general election, hoping it will help him retain Orthodox voters who boosted him to victory in 2021. The New York Post repeatedly stokes racist fears about Zohran Mamdani's "anti-Israel," pro-Palestinian views, and about the fact that he would be the city's first Muslim mayor.
And last month, former governor Andrew Cuomo spoke at a synagogue on the Upper West Side and accused his rivals—including Comptroller Brad Lander, the highest-ranking Jewish official in City government—of being aligned with the "forces of antisemitism." Lander's response at the time was to curse Cuomo out in Yiddish.
On Wednesday night, Lander appeared at the same synagogue where Cuomo attacked him, to call out what he referred to as the "weaponization of antisemitism," and urge the congregation to "not fall for cynical approaches from opportunistic politicians—in some cases, politicians who aren't even Jewish, ironically seeking to demonize leaders who are."
Lander told the crowd at the West Side Institutional Synagogue that in this respect, Donald Trump and Cuomo are one in the same: "Both are using Jews as pawns to advance their own interests—in dangerous ways."