New York governor won't remove NYC mayor, for now, but plans to increase oversight of City Hall

NEW YORK (AP) — Gov. Kathy Hochul won't immediately remove New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office, but will instead push for increased oversight of City Hall as he faces intense scrutiny over his bribery case and his relationship with the Trump administration.

Hochul announced Thursday that she has, for now, decided against using her authority to remove Adams over concerns that such a move could result in “disruption and chaos” and would ultimately be undemocratic.

“New York is facing a grave threat from Washington," she said at a news conference in Manhattan. "The Trump administration is already trying to use the legal jeopardy facing our mayor as leverage to squeeze and punish our city.”

The decision came after she solicited opinions this week from a roster of New York political figures over questions about whether Adams could independently govern following the Justice Department’s move to drop his federal corruption case so he could help with Republican President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.

Rather than remove Adams, Hochul said she would propose legislation to install new guardrails around City Hall to begin “reestablishing trust” with the public.

Her plan would establish a new deputy inspector general for New York City and provide additional funding for the state comptroller to probe city finances. Hochul also wants to create an explicit mechanism for the city’s comptroller, public advocate and council speaker to launch lawsuits against the federal government.

The measures, if approved by state lawmakers, would expire at the end of 2025 when Adams' first term finishes and be subject to future renewal, she said.

In a statement after the governor's announcement, Adams said, “While there is no legal basis for limiting New Yorkers’ power by limiting the authority of my office, I have told the governor, as we have done in the past, that I am willing to work with her to ensure faith in our government is strong.”

Hochul — a centrist Democrat, as is Adams — has faced questions about the mayor's future since his indictment in September on bribery and other charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

Hochul has been reluctant to oust him, arguing that doing so would be undemocratic and would thrust the city into a complex, court-like removal process that has never been used before against a sitting mayor in the city.

But after four of Adams’ top deputies quit on Monday, the governor said she had “serious questions about the long-term future of this mayoral administration.”

Asked Thursday if the mayor had done anything to restore her confidence, Hochul said she was confident that her “system of checks” would provide adequate oversight into the city’s budgetary, investigatory and legal matters. And she repeatedly left open the door to using her removal powers in the future.

The deputies resigned after an extraordinary series of developments in Adams’ federal criminal case.

First, Justice Department leaders ordered prosecutors to drop it, saying it was impeding the mayor’s ability to help with the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement push.

Then, some prosecutors and supervisors resigned rather than follow what they saw as an improper order, and the acting top prosecutor in Manhattan said Adams’ lawyers had offered to exchange his cooperation on immigration for a dismissal of his case. The mayor and his lead lawyer said they did no such thing.

Then, after some Justice Department figures finally filed paperwork to get the case dismissed, a judge summoned Adams and everyone else involved to court Wednesday to discuss the matter. The judge hasn’t ruled yet on the government’s request to close out the case.

Adams has been set to go on trial in April on charges of taking illegal campaign contributions and getting breaks on travel in exchange for doing favors for the Turkish government.

New York mayors have both worked and tussled with state oversight, with the city having to submit its financial plans to a state-created board for review since a 1975 fiscal crisis.

But while the city has dealt with plenty of state input over the years, New York Law School professor Stephen Louis said it’s difficult to gauge the potential impact of Hochul’s proposals.

“It’s hard to say, ‘Oh, if any of these had been in place, then whatever problem is perceived wouldn’t be happening,’” said Louis, a former longtime New York City government attorney who now teaches about the legal relations between state and local governments.

“There are plenty of people who can examine what’s going on in the mayor’s office. There are people who can sue the federal government. So it’s not really clear how this solves anything,” he said.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks at an event at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends an event at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in the Bronx borough of New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

FILE — New York mayor Eric Adams, right, and New York governor Kathy Hochul attend a ceremony in honor of the New York Liberty's WNBA championship at City Hall in New York, Oct. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuadorians are voting Sunday in the country’s presidential election runoff, facing the choice between incumbent President Daniel Noboa and leftist lawyer Luisa González.

Noboa, a conservative young millionaire, and González have both promised voters solutions to the extortions, killings, kidnappings and other crimes that became part of everyday life as the country emerged from the pandemic. Analysts expect the result in Sunday’s vote to have a very tight margin.

It’s the second presidential runoff election in less than two years in the South American country, where voting is mandatory.

Voters chose Noboa over González in the runoff of a snap election in October 2023. The candidates advanced to Sunday’s contest after polling most votes in February’s first-round election. Noboa won 44.17% of the votes while González garnered 44%.

Voters are primarily worried about the violence that transformed the country, starting in 2021 — a spike in crime tied to the trafficking of cocaine produced in neighboring Colombia and Peru.

Both candidates have promised tough-on-crime policies, better equipment for law enforcement and international help to fight drug cartels and local criminal groups.

“My vote is clear,” said Irene Valdez, a retiree who voted for Noboa. “I want to continue living in freedom.”

Martín Constante, a 19-year-old university student, had a different view. “I think Luisa is going to change things, because Noboa has been very authoritarian,” he said. “Our country needs a lot of changes.”

More than 13 million people are eligible to vote, which is mandatory for adults up to the age of 65. It is optional for people aged 16 and 17 and over 65. Failure to vote results in a $46 fine.

In 2023, Noboa and González were largely unknown to most voters as they sought the presidency for the first time. They were first-term lawmakers in May 2023, when then-President Guillermo Lasso dissolved the National Assembly, shortening his own mandate as a result and triggering that year’s snap election.

Noboa’s first foray into politics was his stint as lawmaker. An heir to a fortune built on the banana trade, Noboa opened an event-organizing company when he was 18 and then joined his father’s Noboa Corp., where he held management positions in the shipping, logistics and commercial areas.

González, 47, held various government jobs during the presidency of Rafael Correa, who led Ecuador from 2007 through 2017 with free-spending socially conservative policies and grew increasingly authoritarian in his last years as president.

Noboa, 37, declared Ecuador to be in a state of “internal armed conflict” in January 2024, allowing him to deploy thousands of soldiers to the streets to combat gangs and to charge people with terrorism counts for alleged ties to organized crime groups.

Under his watch, the homicide rate dropped from 46.18 per 100,000 people in 2023, to 38.76 per 100,000 people in 2024. But despite the decrease, the rate remained far higher than the 6.85 homicides per 100,000 people seen in 2019.

Some of Noboa’s heavy-handed crime-fighting tactics have come under scrutiny for testing the limits of laws and norms of governing. He has also been criticized for allegations of electoral anomalies he made after February’s vote.

Following the first-round election, Noboa said there had been “many irregularities” and that in certain provinces “there were things that didn’t add up.” He provided no further details or evidence. Electoral observers from the Organization of American States and the European Union ruled out fraud.

Garcia Cano reported from Mexico City.

A voter casts her ballot during the presidential election runoff in Quito, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

A voter casts her ballot in the presidential election runoff in Pujili, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Incumbent President Daniel Noboa shows his ballot casts before voting, accompanied by his children, in the presidential election runoff in Olon, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo)

Incumbent President Daniel Noboa casts his vote, accompanied by his children, in the presidential election runoff in Olon, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo)

Voters line up at a polling station during the presidential election runoff in Quito, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

Luisa Gonzalez, presidential candidate from the Citizen Revolution party, speaks after voting in the presidential election runoff in Canuto, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Ochoa)

A police officer holds his ballot during the presidential election runoff in Quito, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

Luisa Gonzalez, presidential candidate from the Citizen Revolution party, waves to supporters after voting in the presidential election runoff in Canuto, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Ochoa)

Women line up to vote in the presidential election runoff in Latacunga, Ecuador. Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Luisa Gonzalez, presidential candidate from the Citizen Revolution party, greets supporters after voting in the presidential election runoff in Canuto, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Ochoa)

A man votes in the presidential election runoff in Latacunga, Ecuador. Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Incumbent President Daniel Noboa watches as his wife, Lavinia Valbonesi, votes in the presidential election runoff in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Incumbent President Daniel Noboa arrives to accompany his wife, Lavinia Valbonesi, to the polls for the presidential election runoff in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025.(AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

A voter stands next to a soldier guarding a polling station during the presidential election runoff in Quito, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

A soldier directs a nun to her polling station during the presidential election runoff in Quito, Ecuador, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

Navy soldiers and reservists stand in formation before heading out to guard polling stations in preparation for Sunday's presidential runoff election, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Saturday, April 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Soldiers stand behind fences placed around the Government Palace in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, April 11, 2025. Ecuadoreans go to the polls on April 13 to elect a new president. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

A campaign poster of Luisa Gonzalez, presidential candidate for the Citizen Revolution party, hangs by a piece of tape on a wall in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Friday, April 11, 2025. Ecuadoreans go to the polls on April 13 to elect a new president. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Supporters of incumbent presidential candidate Daniel Noboa cheer him on during a campaign rally in Quito, Ecuador, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

Posters of incumbent presidential candidate Daniel Noboa cover street poles in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Friday, April 11, 2025. Ecuadoreans go to the polls on April 13 to elect a new president. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

A mural of Luisa Gonzalez, presidential candidate for the Citizen Revolution party, covers a wall in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Thursday, April 10, 2025. Ecuadoreans go to the polls on April 13 to elect a new president. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Army soldiers carry electoral kits at a polling station in preparation for Sunday's presidential runoff election, in Quito, Ecuador, Saturday, April 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

FILES - This combo shows Luisa Gonzalez, presidential candidate from the Citizen Revolution party, left, and Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa, speaking at separate events in Quito, Ecuador on Jan. 19, 2025 and Jan. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa, Files)