Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi — a potential candidate for governor who turned down a role in Mayor-elect Eric Adams’ administration — will reveal his next political move later Monday.
Suozzi is scheduled to hold a virtual press conference at 11 a.m. to “make a major announcement regarding his plans for future elected office,” according to a press release.
Suozzi — who has represented parts of Long Island’s North Shore and a sliver of New York City in Congress since 2017 — also announced over the weekend he was declining Adams’ offer to serve as deputy mayor.
During an unrelated press conference on Nov. 20, Adams mentioned that he was “somehow trying to convince [Suozzi] to be a deputy mayor in my administration.”
In response, Suozzi told The Post he was “flattered” by the proposal and would consider it over Thanksgiving.
Suozzi formally declared Saturday that he would not accept Adams’ offer and had chosen instead to seek another elected office — without specifying which one.
“After discussing it with my family, I believe the best way for me to help him and NYC is in elected office,” he tweeted. “I will announce my plans for the future in the coming days. [Thank you] Eric!”
If Suozzi were to enter New York’s 2022 gubernatorial race, he’d face a crowded field that includes Gov. Kathy Hochul, state Attorney General Letitia James and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose second and final term concludes at the end of the year, has slowly taken steps toward launching a campaign as well.
In an apparent attempt to boost his moderate bona fides, Suozzi backed Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown’s successful write-in campaign against socialist Democratic Party nominee India Walton while Hochul sat the race out.
Suozzi, 59, formerly served as mayor of Glen Cove and Nassau County Executive and unsuccessfully challenged Eliot Spitzer in the 2006 Democratic gubernatorial primary. He was first elected to Congress in 2016 following the retirement of ex-Rep. Steve Israel.
