Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angels and known for his signature red beret, has positioned himself as a potential disruptor in what has become New York City’s most unpredictable mayoral race in recent history.
Sliwa, the Republican nominee for the second consecutive time, campaigns primarily on the subway, moving car to car introducing himself to riders with business cards and personalized conversations. His approach yields responses ranging from celebrity recognition to genuine affection from New Yorkers who have known his presence in the city for decades.
A Surprising Contender
In a fractured field that includes incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, and former Governor Andrew Cuomo running as an independent, Sliwa has found himself in an unexpected position. A New York Times and Siena College poll showed Mamdani leading with 46% support, followed by Cuomo at 24%, Sliwa at 15%, and Adams trailing at 9%.
“When they come up to me, they don’t say, ‘Oh, the Republican,'” Sliwa said in an interview. “They don’t see me as a politician. They see me as one of them, which is rare.”
The Cat Factor
Sliwa’s candidacy recently drew criticism from former President Donald Trump, who refused to endorse him despite their long history dating back to 1986 when both were rising tabloid figures. “I’m a Republican, but Curtis is not exactly prime time. He wants cats in Gracie Mansion,” Trump said on Fox News. “We don’t need to have thousands of cats.”
The comment referenced Sliwa’s reputation for having once kept 17 cats in his Upper West Side apartment. Sliwa explained he took in pets from owners who were getting rid of them during the pandemic, and now has only six cats. Beyond the Republican nomination, he’s also running on an independent ballot line called “Protect Animals.”
A Different Kind of Campaign
While billionaires like John Catsimatidis and Bill Ackman have been working to defeat Mamdani, they haven’t rallied behind Sliwa. Catsimatidis, who received Sliwa’s endorsement in his own 2013 mayoral run, described him as “an entertainer” but acknowledged, “He knows the city and wants to do the right thing. He might have a shot.”
Sliwa dismisses the billionaires’ lack of support: “The billionaires have no influence in this campaign. These billionaires know nothing about politics because they’re not in the streets.”
His campaign has gained endorsements from Republican officials including State GOP chairman Ed Cox, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, and upstate congresswoman Elise Stefanik.
Platform and Priorities
On affordability, a key issue in the race, Sliwa criticizes other candidates’ long-term housing promises. “All these candidates say, ‘Five years from now, 10 years from now, we’ll have 500,000 apartments here,'” Sliwa said. “What are we going to do now to create affordable housing, not then?”
Unlike Mamdani’s proposal to increase taxes on the wealthy, Sliwa advocates cutting income, property and corporate taxes while reducing city spending to attract development. Crime remains central to his message, with proposals including moving police officers from subway platforms to patrolling train cars in pairs.
In the most splintered mayoral election in the city’s history, Sliwa believes his decades of visibility and connection with everyday New Yorkers might give him a chance in a race where being elected could require far less than a majority of votes. Source
