Mamdani said he wants to freeze rents for rent-stabilized apartments. Current Mayor Eric Adams may do everything he can to stop it.
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NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams could jeopardize Zoran Mamdani’s signature housing cost proposal before he leaves office.
Mamdani, who is the Democratic Party’s mayoral candidate in the November 4 election, is running on the platform of freezing rent increases for the city’s roughly 1 million rent-stabilized apartments.
But Mr. Adams could thwart Mr. Mamdani’s plans at the end of his harsh one-term government.
The mayor will appoint all nine members of the vague Rent Guidelines Committee, which sets or halts rent increases that rent-stabilized landlords can make. The terms of the six committee members have already expired.
Once Adams appoints new members, they can join the board immediately and serve terms of two to four years. The current board includes one member whose two-year term expired in 2020, before Adams was elected in 2021, and four members whose terms expired in 2022, Adams’ first year.
The Adams administration has already contacted at least one candidate to replace him.
Eleonora Surgo, a real estate broker and reality TV star of the Netflix show “Selling the City,” confirmed to USA TODAY that government officials contacted her about the board. Slugo said the mayor did not offer her the job directly.
Slugo, a friend of Adams, said she is unlikely to become a member for now as she is considering appearing on her TV show. But she opposed Mamdani’s proposal.
“I believe the rent freeze provides false hope and underestimates the intelligence of New Yorkers,” she said in an Oct. 28 message. “We’re smarter than that.”
The New York Post first reported on Slugo’s possible appointment.
Landlord advocates say rent increases are necessary to offset the rising costs of maintaining and improving buildings. Mamdani’s proposal would not apply to market-rate units or public housing.
Mamdani, a democratic socialist, gained national recognition for her campaign, which focused on rising costs, particularly housing costs. Adams supported former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, an independent candidate who opposes the rent freeze. Adams has received significant campaign contributions from the real estate industry.
Adams spokeswoman Kayla Mamelak did not rule out appointing new Rent Guidelines Committee members.
“Mayor Adams will continue to spend the remainder of his term serving New Yorkers every day,” Mayor Mamelak said in a statement. “Mayor Adams has the authority to appoint members of the commission, just as he inherited appointees from the Rent Guidelines Commission when he took office.”
Dora Pekek, a spokeswoman for Mamdani’s campaign, referred to USA TODAY a recent interview Mamdani gave to New York City news outlet Hell Gate. “This is a fitting end to an administration that has failed working-class New Yorkers,” Mamdani said.
But he also argued that he could not stop Mr. Adams from fulfilling his campaign promises. Although he did not elaborate on specific strategies, he suggested that he might be able to emulate what he described as Republicans’ imaginative approach to “how they want to use power.”
During the eight years of Adams’ predecessor, Mayor Bill de Blasio, the Rent Guidelines Commission froze rents three times. Under the Adams administration, the board never froze rents. Tenant advocates claim the board raised rents by 12% under Adams.
“Mr. Adams is going to do whatever he wants in the coming months to ensure that his legacy of rent increases continues,” said Ritti Singh, a spokeswoman for Tenant Block of New York, an advocacy group that organized renters to support Mr. Mamdani in June’s Democratic primary. “But we are ready to fight it and win a rent freeze.”
She cited organizing efforts, such as in 2023, that resulted in left-wing city councilors and activists storming the Rent Guidelines Committee podium to prevent large rent increases. Singh hoped lawmakers would do so again.
If Adams were to appoint a new commissioner binding future mayors, it would be unprecedented in the Rent Guidelines Commission’s 56-year history, said Tim Collins, who served as the commission’s executive director from 1988 to 1994. It could also create a pattern in which future mayors wait until the last minute to exert more influence over their successors’ terms.
If Mamdani wins the mayoral election, he will take office on January 1. The chairman of the Rent Guidelines Committee, which is appointed at the mayor’s discretion, may be replaced immediately. One member’s term expires on December 31st, and another member’s term expires in December 2026.
Under the state’s Rent Stabilization Act, Mamdani can remove members for “just cause,” but he will also have the opportunity to appeal the dismissal.
The law does not specify what cause means or provide details of the hearing process. Collins, who wrote a biography for the board, said removing a sitting director had never been attempted before.
Ultimately, Adams’ actions could lead to the City Council stepping in to gain a greater say in the board appointment process, which until now has been reserved for the mayor, Collins said in an email.
“The bottom line is that executive arrogance is likely to backfire,” Collins says.
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Contact us via email (emcuevas1@usatoday.com) or Signal (emcuevas.01).
