2021 questions

Campaign season never ends in New York: Next June, primary voters will make one of a half dozen candidates the Democratic nominee for mayor, making them the heavy favorite to get elected the city’s 110th chief executive in November. City Council Speaker Corey Johnson took himself out of the running last week, but the field of hopeful candidates has widened in recent months. The more the merrier, and it’s still early, but we’re awaiting compelling, detailed and, ahem, independent-minded visions from contenders showing how they’d run things.

First, we need to hear how each will tackle the city’s COVID-19 induced fiscal crisis. The unemployment rate has quadrupled since February, and city spending is still growing, despite plummeting tax revenues.

This is an emergency; act like it.

More than ever, the city needs someone with the backbone to weather criticism if it comes in the course of doing the right, but unpopular thing. With precious few exceptions, Democratic candidates have seemed most interested in delicately calibrating their reactions to the party’s AOC wing rather than risk rubbing the far left the wrong way.

They disparage the mayor’s performance without explaining what they’d do differently. When they urge cuts in spending, they don’t mention renegotiating labor contracts. Convenient.

Of the current elected officials running for mayor, only Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams backed the Industry City rezoning, which died on the vine after the mayor and speaker punted, allowing Councilman Carlos Menchaca’s opposition to send thousands of jobs to the woodchipper.

Give Shaun Donovan points for writing in these pages that the city must reduce spending, not borrow its way out of its current budget hole. Give Controller Scott Stringer credit for creative ideas to rescue small businesses.

New York is at an inflection point. New Yorkers are pleading for imaginative leadership.

Bueller? Bueller?