Scandal Shadows NYC Mayors: Why Finding a "Good" One is so Hard

Scandal seemingly shadows most of NYC's mayors.Photo by(The author)

Managing the most populated city in America carries many burdens

New York City — Wise was whoever first said: if something happens once, call it an accident. If it happens twice, call it a coincidence. But three times or more is a pattern.

After Mayor Eric Adams' recent indictment, many wonder if he'll survive the fallout from multiple ongoing federal investigations. History seems to be on his side, however.

While scandals have historically forced many New York politicians from office, not New York City mayors. They've largely survived scandals and stayed in office.

The question naturally becomes: Why does scandal seemingly shadow most New York City mayors?

From Mayor de Blasio's administration being investigated for running a "questionable" fundraising campaign to Mayor Bloomberg's scandalous "CityTime," being the mayor of Gotham City comes packaged with countless challenges.

Apparently.

Of course, the biggest challenge facing any mayor of New York City is simple: the city is so overly populated that if it were its own country, NYC would be the world’s 103rd largest nation.

In other words, being the mayor of New York City is like being the president of a small country.

Former mayor Rudy Giuliani, whose tenure was ripe with scandal, once called running the city "a thankless job."

This could explain why finding a "good" mayor has been such a hard job for New Yorkers.