As of now, the field to replace Marty Markowitz--who will be termed out in 2013--remains relatively light. Markowitz's top aide, Carlo Scissura, has been talking about making a run, and City Council Finance Chairman Dominic Recchia's name has been floated as a possible candidate, although he may for comptroller if John Liu decides to run for mayor.

If the race comes down to the three of them, Parker, as the lone minority candidate in the field, would stand a very good chance of winning borough-wide. Both State Senator Eric Adams and City Councilman Charles Barron have expressed interest in a run, although Adams is said to be considering a run for Public Advocate, and Barron has expressed interest in running for a number of different city, state and federal offices.

Parker however would also come in to the race with considerable baggage, including a history of violent outbursts. Last year he was convicted of assaulting a New York Post photographer. In 2005, he got into an altercation with a traffic agent and earlier this year he cursed out the governor and had to be restrained from storming the podium during a Senate debate over same-sex marriage.

Phone calls to Parker were not returned.