NYC Mayor’s Top Allies Are Quitting as Probes, Pressures Mount
(Bloomberg) -- New York City Mayor Eric Adams lost two key allies within a span of days as authorities probe his inner circle, pressuring an administration that’s already struggling under record-low poll numbers a year before he seeks reelection.
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Lisa Zornberg, chief counsel to the mayor’s office, abruptly quit late Saturday night, saying “I have concluded that I can no longer effectively serve in my position.”
That came just two days after Adams’ police commissioner, Edward Caban, resigned after federal agents searched Caban’s home and seized his phone. The investigation that led to the seizure of Caban’s phone is one of four separate federal probes that have embroiled the mayor’s office over the past year and led to searches of the homes of several senior administration officials.
In a statement late Saturday night, Adams thanked Zornberg for her work and said that he intends to name a replacement in the coming days.
“These are hard jobs and we don’t expect anyone to stay in them forever,” Adams said.
Zornberg, a former federal prosecutor, has been one of Adams’ most ardent defenders in City Hall over the past 10 months, since news broke in early November that federal law enforcement agents had seized his phones and devices as part of a probe into his 2021 campaign fundraising. She has stated that investigators “have not indicated to us the mayor or his staff are targets of any investigation.”
Her resignation comes a little more than a week after federal agents raided the homes of Caban and his twin brother, James, as well as Edward Caban’s chief of staff, Raul Pintos. Agents also seized phones from City Schools Chancellor David Banks, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright and Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks, who is David Banks’ brother. Agents also seized a phone from Tim Pearson, a former NYPD official who now serves as a senior adviser to Adams.
Quinnipiac University surveys have shown Adams’ approval ratings at the lowest since the school began polling New York City’s registered voters almost 30 years ago. Voters have faulted Adams for his handling of the arrival of thousands of migrants since spring of 2022 and questioned his stewardship of the city’s budget. Earlier this year the mayor proposed deeply unpopular cuts to city services and libraries that he later reversed.
New challengers are also emerging for the 2025 Democratic primary. Jessica Ramos, a progressive state senator from Queens, has joined former city Comptroller Scott Stringer, current Comptroller Brad Lander and Zellnor Myrie, a state senator from Brooklyn, to formally join the race.
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