New York City Mayor Eric Adams’s decision to run for reelection as an independent is injecting fresh uncertainty into a race that has been shaping up into a likely comeback for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D).

Adams announced his decision Thursday after much speculation that he would forgo the Democratic primary amid long odds of winning the nomination, citing the effect that the length of time the criminal case against him dragged on had on his chances. His decision will ensure his political relevancy at least through November.

But while his chances of pulling off a successful independent run seem slim, his decision could still have wide-ranging consequences for the other candidates in the race.

“What I think you have is an opportunity for a strong progressive candidate to emerge to counter, to actually be able to go up against [Cuomo’s] more moderate policies,” said Democratic strategist Basil Smikle, a former executive director of the state party.

Cuomo, the former governor of New York for more than a decade, has been the front-runner for the nomination since he launched his campaign at the start of last month and even before that. His potential return to electoral politics had been long anticipated and was expected to be a juggernaut in the race, particularly with the incumbent mayor under indictment and having almost rock-bottom favorability ratings.

Cuomo has held a steady lead in polling, with his initial support in the hypothetical ranked-choice voting system that the city uses in the 30s. The closest any other candidate has come has often been 20 points back or more.

But even as Adams struggled, he still had a relatively steady base of supporters who stood by him, allowing him to regularly place somewhere between second and fourth place in polling of the crowded field. Some........

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