New York City Mayor Eric Adams abandoned his apparently doomed reelection bid Sunday after weeks of rampant speculation that he would exit the race. Adams made the announcement via his X account where he thanked New York for “making my story a reality.”

“Although this is the end of my reelection campaign, it is not the end of my public service,” promised Adams, who had been running as an independent after falling out with the Democratic Party. 

The decision by Adams sets up a three-way contest between Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, the former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and the Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa. The news is likely to tighten a race that had appeared to be a foregone conclusion for Mamdani after the upstart progressive handily defeated Cuomo in the city’s Democratic mayoral primary in June.