Posted on 09/08/2001 4:51:25 PM PDT by Pokey78
HOLLYWOOD'S political first couple, Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, had arrived in New York in a mood to savour the coming victory of their Democrat candidate for mayor.
"Mark Green is one of the good guys," Beatty crowed. "He's got the experience and he knows the good that government can do for people."
The couple were the hosts at a fundraising benefit where ticket prices ranged from $50 to $1,000 (£34 to £684). Jon Bon Jovi, the rock singer, turned in a star performance. Yet a glance round the hall revealed that not every seat was sold. Adding to the discomfort was the news that the sure-footed Green had stumbled in the polls.
Outside, the "other New York", as it is known, was clamouring to be heard. Call them the poor, the dispossessed, or the people left behind by the boom of recent years; just don't mention their colour. The unpalatable truth is that black and Hispanic voters are being lined up against whites in the battle to win the Democratic nomination for mayor of New York.
The contest was supposed to be a shoo-in for Green, the white, Jewish, Harvard-educated liberal who has been serving as the city's public advocate. But last week a poll showed that Fernando Ferrer, the son of Puerto Rican immigrants and leader of the Bronx, had suddenly overtaken him.
The primary contest, which takes place on Tuesday, has degenerated into a black-white slanging match. "In a world where the best golfer is black and the best rapper is white, isn't it time we lost our stereotypes?" pleaded Green.
There are four candidates in the field, none of whom may be strong enough to win the 40% necessary for outright victory this week. Whoever secures the Democratic nomination is expected to win in November.
Ferrer, who could become the city's first Latino mayor, denies that he is playing the race card. "That's nonsense," he said. "Everybody lives in the 'other New York'. It is about economics, not ethnicity. There are people who need decent affordable housing all over the city."
Yet the turnaround in Ferrer's fortunes can be traced directly to his endorsement by the Rev Al Sharpton, a populist black leader, a fortnight ago. In a city that is dominated by ethnic politics, an alliance between blacks and Hispanics has rarely been achieved. For weeks Ferrer begged for Sharpton's support and the wait appears to have paid off. Only a month ago Ferrer was in fourth place. He now leads Green by 28 to 26 points.
The closeness of the contest has changed the nature of the campaign completely. In its early stages it was overshadowed by the formidable legacy of Rudy Giuliani, the outgoing Republican mayor who has served two terms in office and cannot stand again until 2005. His success in making New York governable after years of misrule gave him such a strong personal vote that even Democrats felt obliged to pay lip service to him.
Bowing to this imperative Green, who was hitherto regarded as an archetypal 1960s leftwinger, shifted to the right and enlisted the support of William Bratton, the former police commissioner of New York and the architect of Giuliani's zero tolerance policy. Bratton has said he wants to come back as Green's police commissioner or as deputy mayor.
Green talks of defending public safety, restricting parole for offenders and being "tight as a tick" with public finances.
Ferrer, by contrast, has effectively been running against Giuliani. In one of his campaign advertisements, a black couple become anxious at the sight of a flashing police siren.
However, the surge in Ferrer's support has led Green to rediscover his left-wing voice. "Police misconduct" now looms as large in his vocabulary as fighting crime.
On the sidelines Michael Bloomberg, the Republican candidate who faces his own primary contest against a little regarded opponent this week, is eagerly watching the drama unfold. The billionaire media mogul has poured record sums of his own money into the campaign, but to negligible effect. A Ferrer candidacy could shepherd white liberals into the Republican camp.
Whoever comes first on Tuesday, Green remains the favourite to secure the Democratic nomination with second preference votes. The Democrats need to win - after losing the presidency to George W Bush they are in the wilderness.
Whoever is elected mayor faces the difficult task of running New York during a recession. The city coffers are emptying fast and the omens for a successful administration to rival Giuliani's are not good.
"Mark Green is going to be an example to the entire country," Beatty gushed last week.
It is more likely, say the cynics, that he will set the scene for the triumphant return of Giuliani in four years.
As a matter of fact, the only thing I'd rather see is Herman Badillo beat Bloomberg in the Republican primary.
NYC Freepers--are any of you planning to vote in the primary? If so, who will you support and why?
*McCain* is doing commercials for Bloomberg (sigh).
I don't live in the big cities like NYC, Detroit, etc. However, it's a lot easier for a white dem to move up the ladder than a minority dem. Therfore, the machines get hurt if the minority dems win. Many white dems won't vote for a black dem.
That's especially if the dem is a "Coleman Young" type. If you don't know who Coleman Young is, imagine Al Sharpton as mayor for 20 years.
There are two Dem machines in New York, the black machine and the white machine. Even though Green has been endorsed by Dinkins, dubious distinction among his natural base, he is now suffering from a movement among blacks and Latinos to "get off the white bandwagon."
Frankly, this is one race where I really don't care what party someone is, as long as they maintain what Giuliani has done. It is one of the few times I would EVER vote democrat if I really believed in someone. Unfortunately I have confidence in none of them.
A little dirt got flung toward Bloomberg yesterday, but since NewYork1 is the only media outlet making a big deal out of it, I doubt if it will stick.
Have you gotten his literature in the mail?
The Guiliani/Bloomberg era is very atypical.
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