Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced Friday that he had become a citizen of Albania
Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced Friday that he had become a citizen of Albania, putting him one step closer to his oft-repeated dream of leaving politics behind for a life abroad.
Adams, a Democrat, received the honorary citizenship “at his request,” according to an official decree from the country’s president, Bajram Begaj.
The news was first reported in the Albanian press and confirmed by a spokesperson for Adams, who said the ex-mayor had “long been a friend and ally of the Albanian-American community.”
Adams, who once described himself as an “international mayor,” has previously expressed an affinity for the small Balkan nation. His adult son lived in the country while competing in Albania’s version of “American Idol” and Adams traveled there himself in October — one of several international trips taken in his final months in office.
“The decision by the Republic of Albania to grant Mayor Adams citizenship reflects that enduring relationship and mutual respect,” the spokesperson, Todd Shapiro, said in a text message, adding that the recognition “further strengthens the bond between New York and Albania.”
The purpose, he said at the time, was “to say hello to a friend and learn from a friend and build a relationship with a friendship that will not allow our oceans or seas to divide us.”
It wasn’t immediately clear what, if anything, Adams planned to do with his new citizenship. But he has previously expressed a desire to move far from his hometown of New York City.
“When I retire from government, I’m going to live in Baku,” Adams, then Brooklyn Borough President, said at an event honoring the Azerbaijan community in 2018. A few years later, in an interview with a Jewish publication, Adams said he would like to retire in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
As mayor, Adams’ penchant for international trips to Turkey prompted a federal indictment focused, in part, on allegations that he accepted improper travel benefits from foreign nationals.
