NYC-WTC_000230704

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

Green Takes On Ferrer Backers Hours after runoff, candidate begins rallying for more support By Robert Polner Some Ferrer supporters now want STAFF WHTEB the borough president to ask his pre-

sleep after securing the Democratic mayoral runoff worked hard Friday to assuage crestfallen supporters of rival candidate, Michael Bloomberg — 2005. p^^er. however, pledged in the final I > Democrat Fernando Femr and enlist of the runoff last week to back their backing in the Nov. 6 general th® Democratic nominee if he lost. He election. not commenting Friday. Storting early Friday morning, as “There's a strong sense that Mark * well as late the night before, Green Green made Al Sharpton into the Will-

I , made calls to such supporters of the ie Horton of the runoff and played ' Bronx borough president’s campaign upon the fears of white New Yorkers as city teachers union president Rar.di that a Latino from the Bronx might Weingarten, state Comptroller Carl not be competent to run the city,” said McCall, and U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks Phillip Thompson, associate professor (D-Queens). of political science at Columbia Univer- “He must have made 50 or 60 calls,” sity. o I said Green spokesman Joe DePlasco. Green downplayed talk of resent- “There’s nothing unusual about that, ment Friday. At his appearance with o H It’s what you do after a primaiy. You the two senators, though, he praised reach out to those who supported your Ferrer for running an “extraordinary, o Q CD Hl opponent, and you ask them to join passionate, nrindpled, inspiring race,” you for the sake of party unity.” “V Y borough presi- n H But the new party standard-bearer’s wortog With Latino hectic day - which included his first and black leaders of the «ty on such is ho news conference with Sens. Hillary sues as educafion and health care co Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer ^o^meet with as _ coaducted ™id .inaaenas JRj£53^a’SSX’ifS ro cial resentment over Green’s that he would also welcome the sup- o Q llth-hour attack ad questioning Fer­ . port of Sharpton, whom he described o O rer’s capabilities. as “inarguably a leader.” o The Green campaign has insisted Although Green now faces that the ad’s closing message — “Can Bloomberg, he stayed away from men­ I We Afford to Take a Chance?” — was tioning him and seemed swept up in­ o based on a newspaper editorial, which stead by news of a local anthrax case had depicted Ferrer’s response to the and another suspicious letter received co World Trade Center attacks as some­ by a New York Times reporter — inci­ co what vague and nearly irresponsible. dents that threw the nerve-jangled o But many of Ferrer hackers detected city he hopes to run on high alert, and COi a coded message to elicit a white back­ had him talking frequently of these ■ co lash. Whites in the end voted over­ perilous times. PhoO] by JetmiTer S. Aftman whelmingly for Green, tipping the bal­ contrib' Demacratic mayoral candidate Mark Green leaves City Hall after a council meeting Friday. ance for him, according to exit polls. uted to this story . . - — - . _ -- -------------- .

NYC-WTC_000230704