Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday quietly issued an executive order that establishes an operating plan in case he and his first deputy are unable to perform their duties.
The order broadens the power of Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom, who spearheaded work on the migrant crisis, in the event that First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright vacates or is unable to do her job.
A previous version of the rules made clear that if Adams couldn’t perform his duties, the first deputy mayor could act in his place. But the new order adds that if both are indisposed, “all such functions, powers or duties of the Mayor are hereby delegated to the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services.”
The new order, which was first reported by City & State, comes as Adams fights to stay in office amid calls for his resignation in the wake of federal corruption charges and multiple ongoing investigations. A wave of high-profile officials left Adams’ administration prior to his indictment. Adams pleaded not guilty on Friday.
The move may signal that the administration is being pressured to implement a clear transition plan in the face of Adams’ legal and political crisis.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has the power to remove the mayor, has not called for Adams to resign. But in a statement on Thursday, she said the mayor needed “to take the next few days to review the situation and find an appropriate path forward to ensure the people of New York City are being well-served by their leaders.”
When reached by phone, Williams-Isom said she had already been informally assigned to assume the duties of mayor in the event Adams and Wright were both out of town or indisposed. She described the change as “pro forma.”
“Legally, it was supposed to be in an executive order,” she said.
The selection of the deputy mayor of health and human services as third in the line of succession is unusual, according to John Kaehny, the executive director of the good government group Reinvent Albany.
“Usually the deputy mayor for operations is the most powerful after the first deputy mayor,” he said.
Deputy Mayor or Operations Meera Joshi is not considered to be close to the mayor.
Wright, the first deputy mayor, has faced intensifying scrutiny since earlier this month, when she was among the key administration officials who had their phones seized by federal agents. Wright’s partner, Schools Chancellor David Banks, announced Tuesday that he would retire at the end of the calendar year — and halfway through the school year.
“Sheena is not resigning,” a City Hall spokesperson said in a statement to Gothamist. “It is simply good governance to establish a clear line of succession, for the sake of continuity, in the instance that the mayor and first deputy mayor are both out of pocket.”
Wright, who was long been considered a close adviser to the mayor, headed Adams’ transition team after he won the November 2021 election.
She was initially appointed as deputy mayor for strategic initiatives and became first deputy at the end of 2022, when Lorraine Grillo resigned from the position.
Update: This story has been updated with a comment from John Kaehny of Reinvent Albany and a statement from City Hall.
