Overview

• On Wednesday, Zohran Mamdani said he would model policy on Bill de Blasio’s services‑focused decriminalization approach, arguing it produced better public-safety outcomes than Mayor Eric Adams’ strategy.
• Adams publicly criticized Mamdani’s stance, invoking his Christian faith, questioning Mamdani’s religious justification, and arguing prostitution is intertwined with sex trafficking and crime.
• In a TMZ interview, Adams opposed concepts such as red‑light districts and cited his years as a police officer and memories of teenagers selling sex to explain his position.
• Reporting notes Mamdani has previously co‑sponsored New York Assembly legislation to legalize prostitution across the city.
• The clash unfolds in a multi‑candidate general election that includes Adams and Andrew Cuomo on independent lines, with context from the Manhattan DA’s 2021 decision to stop prosecuting prostitution cases.