NYC Mayor Adams' press secretary resigning ahead of term's end

Chris Sommerfeldt and Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News on Oct 17, 2025

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NEW YORK — Kayla Mamelak Altus, Mayor Eric Adams’ press secretary, plans to soon resign from her post, exiting early instead of staying through the end of his term in light of his decision to not seek reelection.

Her resignation is set to be effective late October or early November, according to sources with knowledge of the matter.

Mamelak Altus confirmed that timeline to the New York Daily News on Friday, saying she’ll be out around “the end of the month.”

“I know how much you’ll miss me!” Mamelak Altus wrote in a text.

Mamelak Altus — who has on multiple occasions engaged in public spats with reporters on social media — said in a written statement later in the day she had always planned to leave Adams’ administration after his first term.

But she said she moved up her departure because of Adams’ decision last month to drop out of the 2025 mayoral race as fallout from his federal corruption indictment continued to hang over him.

Mamelak Altus said she doesn’t have another job lined up and hopes to spend more time with her two children once out of City Hall.

“I have absolutely loved this job and everyone I’ve had the privilege to work alongside — yes, that includes the reporters I’ve gone head-to-head with covering Mayor Adams,” she said.

Liz Garcia, Adams’ first deputy press secretary, is expected to replace Mamelak Altus as the mayor’s top mouthpiece at City Hall.

Mamelak Altus, a native of Calabasas, California, came to Adams’ administration in 2022 after working as a reporter for Fox 5 New York. She was first hired as a deputy press secretary before being elevated to the top job in the press shop in November 2024.

“She is amazing, really understands the pulse of the city, and just an authentic New Yorker, with her two beautiful children,” Adams said of Mamelak Altus in August during a "Sid & Friends in the Morning" interview.

Even though she served in the post for less than a year, Fabien Levy, her boss and Adams’ deputy mayor for communications, called Mamelak Altus “the greatest press secretary to ever serve in the Office of the Mayor.”

Adams’ administration has seen several other high-profile departures in recent months as his chances of reelection dimmed and approval ratings reached record lows, in part due to voter distrust following the Trump administration’s controversial dismissal of his corruption indictment.

Amid the plummeting poll numbers, the mayor dropped his reelection bid on Sept. 28.

His reputation has taken some serious hits over the past year: He was indicted, many in his inner circle were raided or also charged with crimes, and he was widely accused of entering a corrupt deal with President Donald Trump to get his federal indictment dropped.

Adams has around 2 1/2 months left in his term, as he’s set to depart Jan. 1.

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