With the federal election hype having died down, New York City is preparing for its mayoral election in late 2021. Incumbent Bill de Blasio has reached his term limit and therefore a new mayor will be elected on November 2, 2021.
With several candidates already declared at this point, there are still some heavy-hitting names that may be in the running, including Andrew Yang, who gained attention during his Democratic primary participation in 2020. Yang is well ahead in the early polls and is the favorite in the New York City mayor odds as well.
Online sportsbook [Sportsbook not available for your region] has released New York City mayor odds with Yang as the favorite at -210. He’s followed by Eric Adams at +400, Maya Wiley at +1000, Scott Stringer at +1200 and Raymond McGuire at +1500 to round out the top five candidates on the oddsboard.
Odds to Become Next Mayor of New York City
| Candidate | Current | Sportsbook |
|---|---|---|
| Andrew Yang | -210 | +175 |
| Eric Adams | +400 | +250 |
| Maya Wiley | +1000 | +900 |
| Scott Stringer | +1200 | +400 |
| Raymond McGuire | +1500 | +525 |
| Carlos Menchaca | +4500 | +5000 |
| Dianne Morales | +4500 | +10000 |
| Kathryn Garcia | +4500 | +2000 |
| Shaun Donovan | +4500 | +5000 |
Odds as of April 13 at [Sportsbook not available for your region]
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Yang Gang In NYC
One of the key elements that drew attention to Yang during the Democratic primaries was his proposed “Freedom Dividend,” through which every eligible American adult would receive a $1,000 check every month. This proposal was his forward-thinking approach that many low-wage jobs may be phased out with automation and this check could help people go back to school or manage day-to-day finances – something many Americans definitely could have used during the pandemic.
Yang is a progressive-thinking politician who appears to really take the time to think about his approach and where he’d like to see America move forward. This was on full display when he was on the popular podcast The Joe Rogan Experience, where he was very articulate and down to earth.
Polling has suggested that 20 percent of New Yorkers would support Yang. He filed his paperwork in late 2020 and officially launched a mayoral campaign in mid-January. If he would like to run for president in 2024 (+1600 odds), which I’m sure he does, then a position like the New York mayoralty could definitely give him a platform to implement change at that level and enable him to come to the Democratic primaries with a little more credibility than before.
Overall, I think Yang has the charisma and forward-thinking approach that will get a lot of support. He is well worth the gamble to win at -210.
New York City Mayor Race: Where’s The Value Pick?
I think there are two names of note in the mayoral election, though one has more of my interest than the other. The first would be NYC comptroller Scott Stringer at +1200, and the other is former U.S. secretary of housing and urban development Shaun Donovan at +4500.
Given the choice between the two, I think Stringer would have the inside lane over Donovan, and the odds back that up. The biggest thing Stringer has in his back pocket is his role as NYC comptroller, and he needs to be fiscally responsible as NYC deals with the economic fallout in the wake of the pandemic.
That said, perhaps some will blame the NYC economy on him because he was in charge of that position. But Stringer is progressive and is well known across the city and will definitely have some influential backers in his corner.
Donovan lacks a lot of charisma but has previous high-profile jobs such as budget director for President Barack Obama and the NYC Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner under former mayor Michael Bloomberg. The experience is there, but I’m not sure he has the energy and the charisma to lead a major city such as New York.
