Personality
Other 2024 awards celebrating the unique world of New York politics
While they may not have made Winners & Losers of the Year, they certainly made their mark.
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani somehow broke through the glass floor this year. Alex Kent/Getty Images
City & State’s Winners & Losers of the Year for 2024 featured five major sets of honorees on each side. However, there were many other political events this year that didn’t catapult a political figure onto the top list but were still notable in their own right. Here are this year’s other special awards that fell in the middle between being winners and losers.
GTFO award for most timely exit: Lisa Zornberg
What’s the appropriate number of sentences in which to resign as chief counsel for the New York City mayor? Three, apparently. And send the letter after 10 p.m. on a Saturday night.
Eve award for most impactful bite: Susan Zhuang
She was arrested for biting a cop. She’ll be fighting the charges in court next year. She is, by all accounts, more popular than ever.
Headline award for most relevant irrelevant person: Andrew Cuomo
Will he run for New York City mayor? We don’t know, but we sure are chatting a lot about him!
Honorable mention: Anthony Weiner
Glass floor award: Rudy Giuliani
Just when you think this guy can’t fall any further, he loses his Upper East Side penthouse, 1980 Mercedes, Yankees gear and watches.
Good job, good effort award: Letitia James, Alvin Bragg, Damian Williams
These three put a lot of work into holding Donald Trump accountable, and it might not amount to anything thanks to the voters.
Heard it here first award: The City
The essential nonprofit news outlet often preempted government watchdogs this year – most recently when Eric Adams fundraisers Weihong Hu and the Rev. Al Cockfield were raided by the FBI following The City’s investigation.
Honorable mention: The short-lived Eric Adams Crime Family X account
Social media will save us award: Chi Ossé
He’s a TikTok star, and it helped him kill the broker fee.
Social media will ruin us award: Andrew Gounardes, Nily Rozic, Letitia James and Kathy Hochul
Come to think of it, maybe profit-seeking surveillance companies shouldn’t have unfettered 24/7 access to kids. These officials are reining them in – or at least trying to.
WFP candidate of the year: Anthony Frascone
This low-profile contractor caused considerable consternation on the left when he hijacked the Working Families Party ballot line in one of the nation’s swingiest House districts.
Patron saint of (maybe not) lost causes award: Janno Lieber
“I take the governor at her word.” He said it a thousand times that the governor was just putting congestion pricing “on pause,” not killing it. And she did reinstate the program after all, albeit at a less lucrative $9 toll.
Could be fun to fix award: State Capitol elevators
New York Post reporter Vaughn Golden and staffer Alex Flood got stuck in Capitol complex elevators two weeks apart. Time to fix those elevators before the session starts!