Eric Adams to be Sworn In Just After Midnight on Jan. 1

By Yehudit Garmaise

Eric Adams’ inauguration has been rescheduled to take place just after midnight on Jan. 1, shortly after the Waterford Crystal “ball drops” to usher in 2021 in the Times Square tourist hotspot that is sometimes called the “Crossroads of the World.” 

“Times Square has long been synonymous with the New Year: a place of excitement, renewal, and hope for the future,” which Adams said, “are the same themes that animated my campaign and will inform my mayoralty, as I prepare to lead the city out of this challenging period.”

Using Adams’s family Bible, City Clerk Michael McSweeney will swear in New York City’s 110th mayor, who will assume office for the first time, on Saturday. 

While the New Year’s Eve crowd in Times Square has numbered up to 58,000 before the COVID pandemic, this year, due to the spread of the Omicron variant, Mayor Bill de Blasio allowed the outdoor event to take place with 15,000 fully vaccinated and masked New Yorkers. 

Weeks ago, before the latest COVID surge, Adams had planned an indoor inauguration ceremony at the Kings Theatre in Flatbush to honor the two other Brooklynites, besides himself, who will be prominently serving in City Hall this year: Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and incoming Comptroller Brad Lander. That ceremony, which Adams said he wanted to hold after sundown after Shabbos ended, so that his Orthodox Jewish friends and supporters could attend, will be rescheduled, Adams said.

Photo by: Lensky Photo