Curtis Sliwa’s boss becomes the latest Republican trying to push him out of NYC mayoral race

By Gloria Pazmino, CNN

New York (CNN) — Republican New York City mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa is facing renewed pressure to drop his bid for mayor – this time directly from his boss.

John Catsimatidis, the Republican supermarket magnate and lifelong New Yorker, took to the airwaves of WABC-AM, the radio station he owns and where Sliwa hosts a show, to call for him to drop out.

“Look, I love Curtis; we’ve worked together a lot,” Catsimatidis said.

“Curtis has to realize that he should love New York more than anything else, and it certainly looks like Curtis should pull out right now,” Catsimatidis added.

Catsimatidis and some other Republicans have rallied behind Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent, in a bid to stop Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani from becoming mayor. Cuomo and his allies are pushing Sliwa to drop out after successfully getting Mayor Eric Adams to leave the race, arguing the former New York governor could then consolidate opposition to Mamdani, a democratic socialist.

Sliwa, who has worked for WABC radio for decades, has been on leave from the station since launching his bid for mayor, according to a release issued by Catsimatidis.

The back-and-forth over Sliwa’s future in the race appears to have only emboldened him. Having drawn new attention from his performance in Thursday’s debate, Sliwa has dismissed Cuomo and his backers as he argues voters should have the last word when it comes to New York City’s future.

During an interview posted Saturday with YouTube journalist Nate Friedman, Sliwa rebuked Cuomo and high-profile backers, including Bill Ackman, who has been sharply critical of both Sliwa and Mamdani.

“Now he’s saying I can’t win without Sliwa votes – where are your votes? He’s got millions from the billionaires, millions – go out, get you a vote, convert Sliwa voters,” Sliwa said of Cuomo. “But for me to drop out? I represent a major party line. This is called voting. Since when do we not let people vote? Billionaires determine the next mayor? If they don’t like it, they can leave, they have options. Blue-collar working-class people don’t; those are the people I am representing, not Andrew Cuomo.”

Catsimatidis’ comments come a day after President Donald Trump was asked whether he would get involved in the race for mayor and support Sliwa. Trump has been dismissive of the Republican nominee, referring to him as “not exactly primetime,” and mocking Sliwa’s affinity for cats and animal rescues.

“Am I a big fan?” Trump said Sunday, speaking to Fox News. “This isn’t exactly ideal, where he wants to make Gracie Mansion a home for the cats you know?”

Sliwa, best known for founding the Guardian Angels crime group, is a perennial mayoral candidate who ran in 2021 and has never held political office. He’s polling third in the current race behind Mamdani and Cuomo.

Cuomo has openly appealed to Republicans, trying to cast himself as the moderate choice against Mamdani. He has tried to discredit Sliwa, referring to him as a “shock jock” and arguing anyone who does not support Mamdani should vote for him and not Sliwa.

“Curtis Sliwa is not an alternative, he’s not a viable candidate,” Cuomo said over the weekend speaking on Fox News. “You vote for Curtis, you might as well vote for Zohran Mamdani directly.”

The comments have made Mamdani and Sliwa strange bedfellows, to the point that aides to Cuomo have started to suggest Mamdani and Sliwa are coordinating.

Asked about it Monday, Mamdani laughed off the suggestion.

“That is one place where Curtis and I agree, which is, it’s time for New Yorkers to make this decision, not for billionaire donors to determine who gets to run in this city,” Mamdani said.

Asked if he was advising Sliwa to stay in the race, Mamdani said, “My advice to him is continue making his own case. I’m focused on making my own case to New Yorkers.”

This story has been updated with additional details.

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