National Guard not welcome: NYC mayoral candidates come out strong against troop deployments

President Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to major American cities loomed large over Thursday night’s New York City mayoral debate.

During Thursday night’s debate, the candidates, Democrat Zohran Mamdani, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa, were asked about the "threat hanging over the city" of National Guard troops being sent to New York City. All three candidates indicated they would oppose troops being sent to the city.

"If the president ordered troops to hit the streets of New York now, how would you respond?" a moderator asked.

"We do not need the National Guard here in New York City," answered Mamdani.

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"If it was safety that President Trump was so concerned about, he would send them to the eight out of ten states that have the highest levels of crime in this country. But he won't because they're all run by Republicans," he asserted.

"What New Yorkers need is a mayor who can stand up to Donald Trump and actually deliver on that safety," he went on. "When Donald Trump sent ICE agents on people in Los Angeles, Andrew Cuomo said that New Yorkers need not overreact. That is the furthest answer that New Yorkers are looking for. They are looking for someone who will lead, someone who will say that they will have their back, someone who will actually fight for the people of this city."

Cuomo, meanwhile, said that "the answer in the subways is not more National Guard" but rather "more NYPD is the answer."

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He asserted that Trump is "not sending in the National Guard to do any real function. It's control. It's power."

"He's trying to say these Democrats don't know how to run these cities and it's a political gesture by sending in the National Guard," he continued, adding that if Mamdani is elected, Trump "will take over New York. Forget the National Guard."

Sliwa similarly said, "There’s no need for the National Guard in New York," and that "there are other cities that could desperately use their help in dealing with their crime crisis."

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Asked for a show of hands on whether there are any circumstances in which they would allow the New York Police Department to cooperate with National Guard troops sent by Trump, not a single candidate raised their hand.

With under three weeks until Election Day, Mamdani holds a double-digit lead in the race for the nation's most populous city, but former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is narrowing the gap, according to the latest public polling.

Mamdani stands at 46% support among likely voters in the most recent survey in the race, from Quinnipiac University. Cuomo had 33% support in the survey and Sliwa stood at 15% in the poll.