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Anthony Weiner launches NYC mayoral campaign

May 22, 2013 Helen Klein

BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP/file photo

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BY HELEN KLEIN AND AMANDA GLODOWSKI

Former Congressmember Anthony Weiner has officially kicked off what he hopes will be his political comeback by launching a campaign for New York City mayor.

Almost two years after resigning from Congress in the wake of a sexting scandal, the former representative of southern Brooklyn and Queens amde the announcement late Tuesday, May 21, in a YouTube video.

The video begins with Weiner and wife Huma Abedin feeding their baby, Jordan, in their Manhattan apartment, and follows Weiner through the middle-class neighborhoods whose residents he hopes will support him in his quest.

Among the Brooklyn backdrops that are easily recognizable are the streets of Park Slope, where Weiner grew up, Midwood High School and a quiet residential block of Midwood, which he represented in the earliest phase of his career, when he was a city councilmember from 1992 to 1998.

“Look I made some big mistakes and I know I let a lot of people down. But I’ve also learned some tough lessons. I’m running for mayor because I’ve been fighting for the middle class and those struggling to make it my entire life. And I hope I get a second chance to work for you,” he said.

In 2011, as he announced his resignation, Weiner had said, “I’m here today to apologize for a personal mistake I have made. I make this apology to my neighbors and my constituents, and I apologize particularly to my wife, Huma. I hope to be able to continue the work citizens in my district elected me to do – to fight for the middle class and those struggling to make it. Unfortunately, the distraction that I have created has made that impossible, so today I am announcing my resignation from Congress.”

Voters encountered on Third Avenue in Bay Ridge were divided as to whether Weiner should try to restart his political career.

“He seems like a good politician, just a bad tweeter,” opined Tony C.

“I think he deserves a second shot, all politicians have their issues,” added Kathy Henkel.

But, Jeff D. had a different take on it, expressing disdain for politicians. “Can it get any worse?” he asked. “They’re all wieners.”

Weiner had previously run for mayor, in 2005, pulling out of contention for the Democratic nomination to spare the frontrunner, Fernando Ferrer, a divisive run-off following the primary. At that point, Weiner was looked at as a likely frontrunner should he choose to run for mayor in the future.

He has a hefty campaign war chest, reporting nearly $4 million in campaign funds, according to the State Board of Elections 2013 January Periodic Report.

According to a Quinnipiac University poll, released on May 22, Weiner is second among the Democratic candidates, with 15 percent, behind Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who polled at 25 percent.

Former Comptroller Bill Thompson and Public Advocate Bill De Blasio are tied in third place, with 10 percent, followed by Comptroller John Liu at six percent and former Councilmember Sal Albanese, who got two percent. Twenty seven percent of the voters polled said they were undecided. In the same poll, voters opined that Weiner should not run for mayor, by a margin of 49 to 38 percent.

Weiner has also created a new Twitter account: @anthonyweiner, from which he shared his “Keys to the City” with “64 Ideas to Keep New York the Capital of the Middle Class.”