Eric Adams, Under Indictment, to Make His Case for a Second Term

Eric Adams, the first mayor in modern New York City history to run for re-election while under federal indictment, will step onstage at the Apollo Theater in Harlem on Thursday and make his best case for a second term.It may not be an easy task.Mr.Adams, a showman who relishes a political fight, will use his final State of the City speech before the June primary to highlight his accomplishments and the allies who have stuck by his side.The annual address is typically a mixture of political stagecraft and rhetoric that puts a sheen on the mayor’s record and lays out a vision for the future.But for Mr.

Adams, accomplishing those goals will be difficult.He is scheduled to go on trial in April on federal corruption charges; his approval rating has fallen to record lows; nine top city officials have resigned amid a swirl of investigations; violence on the subway and scandal at the Police Department have undermined his agenda.Mr.

Adams acknowledged his myriad challenges at a news conference at City Hall on Tuesday, dodging questions about the state-run transit system by referring to a Jay-Z song.“I got 99 problems, brother, and I’m not looking to take on new ones,” he said.The mayor has focused on two themes to get his mayoralty back on track: public safety and affordability.He previewed some of his talking points at the news conference, boasting about declining crime numbers, pledging to remove mentally ill people from the streets and referring all questions about his indictment to his criminal lawyer, who Mr.

Adams noted also represented Jay-Z and the billionaire Elon Musk.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe....