New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
is backing City Council speaker Christine Quinn for mayor in 2013, at
least privately, The
New York Times reported.
Manhattan's largest daily reported on
Monday that Bloomberg “has told almost everyone who asks – but
only privately, so far – that he hopes … Quinn will succeed him.”
“There's no question in my mind that
of all the candidates, he sees Chris Quinn as far better for the city
of New York,” said former Mayor Ed Koch.
But the Times noted that
Bloomberg, who is facing the lowest approval ratings of his tenure
and is limited to giving $4,950 to Quinn's bid, cannot hand-pick his
successor.
“You cannot anoint; you can
influence, you can impact,” Koch said. “It is not an overriding
endorsement that assures you of success.”
The paper added that a Bloomberg
endorsement could help Quinn with business leaders and Republicans
but hurt her among liberals who opposed the mayor's cuts in social
services.
If elected, Quinn would become the
city's first openly gay mayor, and the nation's most visible.
Quinn and her partner of 10 years,
lawyer Kim Catullo, plan to take advantage of the gay marriage law
she and Bloomberg helped pass. The couple has announced they'll
marry next spring.