A kind of local New York celebrity, Curtis Sliwa is no stranger to the spotlight.
When he founded the Guardian Angels subway patrol group in 1979, he adopted as a uniform a red beret that could be easily spotted by reporters, the public and cameras. Mr. Sliwa, 71, has more recently hosted a talk radio show, and he ran for mayor four years ago, losing to Mayor Eric Adams.
But because Mr. Sliwa this year ran unopposed for the Republican nomination, he has not yet gone toe-to-toe with other candidates in the race, and Thursday’s debate could be a kind of proving ground.
Mr. Sliwa is at a disadvantage in a city where Democrats outnumber Republicans six to one. He has consistently polled behind Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate, and former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who is running as an independent after losing the Democratic primary.
A poll from Quinnipiac University earlier this month found that about 15 percent of likely voters backed Mr. Sliwa, compared with 46 percent backing Mr. Mamdani and 33 percent supporting Mr. Cuomo.
Mr. Cuomo and some of his backers have tried to win over Mr. Sliwa’s supporters by arguing that a vote for the Republican would be effectively wasted. Some donors and voters who oppose Mr. Mamdani have called on Mr. Sliwa to drop out of the race so that an anti-Mamdani faction can unite behind the former governor.
But Mr. Sliwa has stood firm in his campaign bid. He has defended his presence in the race by arguing that many New York voters, Republicans especially, remain disaffected with Mr. Cuomo after his time as governor.
Mr. Sliwa believes his path to victory this time involves courting independent voters and driving up Republican turnout. But some Republican voters could be put off by Mr. Sliwa’s fraught relationship with President Trump, who has publicly criticized him and takes particular issue with the idea of Mr. Sliwa’s six rescue cats moving into Gracie Mansion.
Mr. Sliwa has focused on public safety as a central issue in his campaign, arguing for hiring thousands of new police officers. Where Mr. Cuomo has vowed to hire 5,000 officers, Mr. Sliwa says he would hire 7,000.
Mr. Sliwa has also called for rolling back some efforts at criminal justice reform that he says have hampered efforts to fight crime, pointing to City Council laws that limit qualified immunity for police officers and restrict officers from compressing a suspect’s diaphragm while detaining someone.
“We need to fix those issues and let the N.Y.P.D. do the job they know how to do,” Mr. Sliwa told The New York Times.
Michael Gold covers Congress for The Times, with a focus on immigration policy and congressional oversight.
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