Michael Mulgrew announces the UFT's endorsement at its headquarters Wednesday.

Former Comptroller Bill Thompson’s mayoral campaign got its most significant boost to date this evening with an endorsement from the city's powerful teachers’ union.

The endorsement, which was officially announced just before 6 p.m. following a vote by the union's 3,400-member Delegate Assembly, will provide Mr. Thompson with the organizational muscle of the United Federation of Teachers, which boasts a sophisticated voter outreach operation, approximately 170,000 members across the five boroughs and millions of dollars to spend.

"We're confident we got the right guy with the right team with the right people and we're going to make a difference for the City of New York," said the UFT's president, Michael Mulgrew, as he made the announcement official at the union's Lower Manhattan headquarters, surrounded by dozens of enthusiastic members cheering and holding quickly-made "Bill Thompson for Mayor" signs.

Mr. Mulgrew has spent recent months touting the UFT's beefed-up political muscle, making the case that its members have the influence to crown the city's next mayor.

“We’re not about picking a mayor,” Mr. Mulgrew recently told Politicker of the union's impact on the race. “We’re about making a mayor, making the winner. And that’s what we’re gonna do.” He echoed the sentiment Wednesday: “This is the right guy. He’s the next mayor and we’re gonna make it happen.”

In accepting the endorsement, Mr. Thompson vowed to turn the page on Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has repeatedly clashed with the teacher's union, creating what both sides have acknowledged is the most hostile relationship in decades.

"When I'm mayor, I'm going to fight day and night to help the teachers of New York," said a fired-up Mr. Thompson, whose mother had spent her career as a teacher in city public schools and who had previously served as president of the disbanded Board of Education. "Let me make it real clear. As mayor, I'm not going to demonize teachers. We've had enough of that. I'm gonna help them teach by giving them the resources they need and bringing them back into the decision-making process of how we run our schools."

He also vowed to better involve parents in the conversation. "I'm not going to shut parents out. I'm going to give parents a voice," he said, pledging to make New York "the education city."

Earlier this week, Mr. Bloomberg pointed to the union's checkered endorsement record, describing the UFT's nod as a "Kiss of Death." But Mr. Thompson, whom the UFT declined to endorse in 2009, laughed off the criticism. "If I received a kiss from the UFT today, I'm feeling pretty warm and fuzzy," he said to cheers.

Mr. Mulgrew was also asked what had changed since then. "That was a different time and this union now is in a much different place," he said.

Insiders had expected the race to come down to Mr. Thompson and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, both of whom had carefully touted the union’s positions on issues ranging from charter schools to less focus on testing. But Mr. Thompson--seen as the favorite after endorsements from several figures closely associated with the union, including Mr. Mulgrew's predecessor, Randi Weingarten--ultimately prevailed in what Mr. Mulgrew said was a near-unanimous vote.

"For us the process was about making sure that we felt we picked a candidate who, number one, was the best candidate, had a vision for the future, [but also] had a path that, working with others, would get them to victory," Mr. Mulgrew said when asked what had made the difference. "We are very, very confident and we are all in to win it. And it is that simple."

A labor source familiar with the union's thinking made the case against Mr. de Blasio more bluntly.

"He has no base. He's got a little of this, and a little of that, a little of this. He has a path to victory, but it's one of those things where you can't miss a single thing. And so that was a big part of it," the source said of the union's ultimate decision. City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, meanwhile, was considered a tough sell to members deeply frustrated over Mr. Bloomberg's legacy, while City Comptroller John Liu--arguably the union's fiercest ally--has been badly tarnished by a federal investigation into his fundraising.

A page from Bill de Blasio's new policy book.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration came out swinging against a new policy book released this morning by Democratic mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio—slamming it on everything from its name to its proposals.

The 69-page book, entitled “One New York, Rising Together,” lays out dozens of ideas it claims “will reverse New York City’s growing economic divide through progressive reforms and renewed investments in education, small businesses, and affordable housing.” They include a universal city ID card regardless of immigration status, an expansion of the city’s bus system and gunshot-sensing technology in high-crime neighborhoods.

But members of the current administration seemed unimpressed.

Deputy Mayor Howard Wolfson, referring to the campaign's frequent references to the growing divide between the city's rich and poor, wrote on Twitter that the "issues book is called 'One New York, Rising Together.' Apparently the '2 cities' theme he was using must have polled badly.”

The words quickly sparked a social media dust-up between him and a de Blasio consultant, John Del Cecato.

“In this 140 character world, I guess @howiewolf didn't make it to the book's first sentence,” Mr. de Blasio's ally tweeted in rebuttal.

The two Twitter rivals quickly pivoted to their preferred issues. For Mr. Wolfson, it was Mr. de Blasio's alleged change of positions on bike lanes and the candidate's push for the endorsement of United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew, set to be announced later this evening. For Mr. Del Cecato,  it was his campaign's accusations that the Bloomberg administration unfairly targets small businesses with fines.

“I was so pleased by his flip flop on bikes that I flipped to that section first!” Mr. Wolfson's attack went.

“This Bloomberg Admin aggression usually reserved for Gaga's Papa," replied Mr. Del Cecato, linking back to a story about the angry pop-star’s father, whose eatery's letter grade was recently downgraded to a “B.”

“shouldn't you be on the phone to Mike Mulgrew singing solidarity forever?” fired back Mr. Wolfson. “There is still time to make the sale!”

“Too busy fighting the Bloomberg Admin's #TicketBlitz," said Mr. Del Cecato again linking to a Daily News report on the spike in violations.

The mayor’s press secretary, Marc La Vorgna also stepped into the brawl, taking a hit against entire field of candidates.

“some context: 70 pages on vision for ENTIRE city is ‘meatiest’ in mayoral race. Our report last wk on one subject, climate change: 430 pages,” he said, later suggesting that the "level of substance" in the campaign paled in comparison to the mayor's report.

Aside from the current inhabitants of City Hall, the response to the book was rather muted, with the other candidates largely steering clear of weighing in. Some observers and rival staffers admitted they hadn't yet read through the extended booklet, which is filled with numerous references to reports Mr. de Blasio has issued and events he's organized as the city's public advocate.

Hunter College Professor Kenneth Sherrill said he thought a lot of the ideas were "laudable," but questioned whether Mr. de Blasio was--at times--over-reaching.

“The question is about how these things would be implemented. Some can be done by the mayor acting alone, but many would require legislation and are under the purview of the comptroller, not the mayor," he told Politicker, specifically referencing pension fund changes. “There’s a lot of ‘I will do this’ or ‘my administration would do this,’ which should have been couched in ‘I would fight for,’ ‘I would work with so-and-so to bring this about."

He added that he'd like to the race pivot more toward substantive issues.

"It would be nice to see a mayoral campaign," he said, "in which these things were seriously discussed.”

Bill Thompson. (Photo: Getty)

The Council of School Supervisors and Administrators endorsed Bill Thompson today, adding a major education union to his labor tally one day before the influential United Federation of Teachers is set to make its pick.

The union, representing nearly 16,000 public school principals and education administrators, said Mr. Thompson's commitment to appointing an educator as schools chancellor, as well as his belief that New York City should be a more affordable place for the middle class, led members of the executive committee to vote to back him.

"They are happy with what he had to say about New York City looking to the future," said CSA President Ernie Logan in a conference call with reporters this morning. "It's about really looking at what works and supporting it ... and if there's something that absolutely makes no sense, stopping it."

Mr. Thompson, whom insiders expect to receive the backing of the UFT tomorrow, would not say whether or not the CSA endorsement was an indicator that the powerful teachers' union would also be in his corner.

"This is about this endorsement and how proud I am to have the support of CSA," Mr. Thompson said. "This is not an indication of anything, this is about this endorsement. "

Perhaps betraying how ideologically similar some of the Democrats are when it comes to education and other policy points, Mr. Logan, when asked by reporters, could not explain why his union's endorsement had gone to Mr. Thompson and not, say, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who has made public school advocacy a centerpiece of his campaign.

"What separates them is that my members have voted to endorse Bill Thompson," Mr. Logan replied. "I can't dig down deep and say what everybody thought individually. My members have heard them all and selected Bill Thompson as the person they should endorse."

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn delivering her speech Monday. (Photo: Twitter/Quinn4NY)

Christine Quinn’s speech on Monday morning marked a turning point for the City Council Speaker as she struggles to maintain her status as the mayoral race's decisive front-runner in the face of lagging poll numbers and former Congressman Anthony Weiner's headline-hogging jump into the race.

In the address, Ms. Quinn, who up until now has tried to keep an above-the-fray approach, first focused on touting her Council record but soon switched into full attack mode, taking shots at her opponents and making the most overt comparison-based case yet of any candidate to voters about why she should be the city’s next mayor.

But the move left several of Ms. Quinn's rivals and other observers scratching their heads.

"The timing and the substance of the speech today confuse me. Front-runners generally don't do speeches hyped up as them blasting their opponents,” said one Democratic consultant unaffiliated with any of the mayoral campaigns. “It makes me think that Quinn's internal polling confirms what the public polling has found: the pack is catching up to her and now she has to try and define them negatively where before she could coast."

Several rival campaign sources similarly speculated that Ms. Quinn's team may have been spooked by a recent internal poll that perhaps showed her support continuing to tumble, instead of leveling out.

“I think it’s about trying to re-set because people are clearly beginning to take her down a couple of notches," said one souce, who also pointed to the New York Times endorsement interviews happening this week. “I think the accomplishment thing is partially pitched at the Times endorsement.”

Ms. Quinn’s campaign, however, dismissed the theories and said the race was simply heating up. With more voters tuning in, they felt it was time to crystallize the distinctions between Ms. Quinn and her rivals in the starkest terms- as "a contest between leadership and talk," per a press release.

But the campaign was also seizing on an opportunity created by last week's critical Times story about Mr. Weiner's congressional record, which provided an unexpected opportunity to shift the conversation, according to campaign source.

"Recent press reports on both Weiner's lack of a record and the back and forth over the Upper East Side transfer station gave us a huge opening to talk about Chris Quinn's record, leadership, and the pandering her opponents are engaged in,” said a Quinn campaign insider. “The campaign seized those opportunities and we will continue to do so."

But some rival campaign sources are questioning even that tactic.

For example, one argued accomplishment-based messaging had failed for both of Ms. Quinn's Council speaker predecessors, who lost their  own mayor bids.

Another questioned whether voters were really looking for a long resume, and instead argued most want a candidate who shares their values, pointing to President Barack Obama’s decisive 2008 win over Hillary Clinton—whom most voters considered more experienced.

“I’m just very skeptical that the accomplishments thing is effective,” the source said.

Additional reporting by Colin Campbell.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn giving her most political speech to-date in East Harlem Monday.

Some candidates revere former mayors and presidents as their political inspiration. But for Christine Quinn, it’s all about Bruce Springsteen.

The City Council speaker and mayoral candidate delivered a scathing speech against her rivals Monday morning, touting her record and vowing to run the city in the model of her musical idol, "The Boss."

“Anyone who’s ever been to a Bruce concert will tell you he doesn’t hold anything back. He leaves everything on the stage. He gives everything he has to give," she said. "And if I’m lucky enough to become our next mayor that’s how I’ll spend every day. Delivering results for New Yorkers. Holding nothing back. Emptying my tank."

In what was billed "a major speech" in the back room of an East Harlem asthma center, Ms. Quinn delivered what was--by far--her most overtly political and blistering remarks to date. Ms. Quinn, who has up until now stuck largely to touting her own record, shoveled out the criticism, taking one thinly veiled shot after the next.

“This election is not about who can get the most press or give the most pithy sound bite," Ms. Quinn said at one point, for example, obviously referencing former Congressman Anthony Weiner's high-profile candidacy. "It isn't about who can yell the loudest or be the most critical."

She even slammed Mr. Weiner's policy proposal book, which borrowed heavily from his aborted 2009 bid.

"I offer something else, the toughness to lead," she said. "Comprehensive solutions to complicated problems--not 4-year-old position papers dusted off for a comeback run."

On former Comptroller Bill Thomson, with whom Ms. Quinn has repeatedly clashed over the controversial Upper East Side waste transfer station: “Some of my opponents in this race continue to pander to residents of the Upper East Side,” the speaker said.

"Like me, my opponents have spent many years in public office," Ms. Quinn said later, leveling fire at the whole field. "But when you look at their records, there's a great big hole where results should be. You may not agree with everything I've done, but there's never been a time in my career when I wasn't getting results for New York."

“That’s what we need from the next mayor," she added. "Not just empty promises, silly press stunts, or nonstop criticism, but a real plan on how to deliver for New Yorkers.”

The speech comes at a vulnerable moment for Ms. Quinn, the race's front-runner who has found her once-dominating poll numbers slipping and her position as the race's most visible candidate eclipsed by Mr. Weiner's entrée three months before primary day.

Today, she tried to shine the spotlight back on her record on issues like education, affordable  housing and the waste station, which she argued put her far ahead of her crowded field of opponents.

"If you want a candidate who lobs criticism on the steps of City Hall or on the floor of Congress, I’m not your gal. I would rather roll up my sleeves than point my finger, because that’s how progress is made. It's what I've always done. And if I'm lucky enough to be Mayor, it's exactly what I'll continue to do," she told the audience of loyal supporters.

"Talk is cheap. Voters will decide based on actions," she added.

After her remarks, Ms. Quinn was nonchalant about the timing of her speech, which she noted comes as many voters are tuning in to the race.

"We are clearly in the thick of the election season now and this race is about the future of New York," she said, immediately pivoting back to her record, which she said tops all of her opponents in the race. “We are less than three months away from primary day and I think it's really important to lay out exactly what the choice is. And that's what I've done today."

One reporter noted that the same argument failed for her two City Council speaker predecessors, who lost their bids for mayor.

"With all due respect to my predecessors, I don’t think you can touch the record of the City Council since I've been speaker," she replied boldly. "I’ll stack my record against anyone who's running and quite frankly anyone who has run."

But the other candidates quickly began shooting back.

And Public Advocate Bill de Blasio's campaign manager, Bill Hyers, said Ms. Quinn had her priorities backwards.

"Speaker Quinn's accomplishments include giving Mayor Bloomberg a third term, proposing to shower big developers with a billion dollar giveaway, and blocking key progressive legislation for years to placate big business. Bill de Blasio has fought to protect abused kids, expose slum landlords, and invest in education by asking the wealthy to pay a little more in taxes. This election is not a contrast in getting things done -- it's about who you are fighting for."

Bill de Blasio and James Sanders. (Photo: Facebook)

Thus far in the mayoral race, almost all of Bill de Blasio's endorsements have come from the battleground borough of the Bronx, but today he is branching out to Queens, where State Senator James Sanders is joining the public advocate's team.

In a statement, Mr. Sanders, whose district includes the Hurricane Sandy-ravaged Rockaways, touted Mr. de Blasio's support in the aftermath of the storm.

“Bill de Blasio was in The Rockaways right after Superstorm Sandy, helping families and small businesses access the emergency services they needed — and his plan to create and protect 200,000 affordable housing units will help these residents rebuild in the years to come,” Mr. Sanders said.

Mr. Sanders also praised Mr. de Blasio's overall support for progressive policies.

“De Blasio is the candidate willing to ask the wealthy to pay a little more so we can fully fund early education and after-school programs — and we need a leader who understands the importance of immediate and sustained investment in our neighborhoods and in our children,” he added.

The Queens County Democratic Party is famously unified and endorsed another candidate, Council Speaker Christine Quinn, in the mayor's race. But elected officials from the heavily African-American, southeastern corner of the borough sometimes go their own way. Indeed, local Congressman Gregory Meeks has already endorsed a third candidate, former Comptroller Bill Thompson, for City Hall.

Mr. Sanders held a City Council seat in the area for ten years before defeating former State Senator Shirley Huntley, who would later plead guilty to corruption charges, in a primary election last year.

Anthony Weiner's 17-month-old son, Jordan, joined him on the campaign trail Sunday.

Anthony Weiner's 17-month-old son, Jordan, joined him on the campaign trail on Father's Day Sunday, earning the occasional "awww" as the former congressman greeted voters at a street fair in Park Slope, Brooklyn, where he grew up.

Little Jordan, decked out blue plaid pants and a stylish fedora, seemed unfazed by the crowd of campaign staffers and reporters who trailed his dad, who was juggling babysitting, posing for photos and urging Democratic voters to sign petitions to get him on the ballot.

"You're big-time upstaging me, bud," he told his son, who munched on a cheese crepe as photographers snapped.

"Any registered Democrats? Are you a registered Democrat, my friends?" called out Mr. Weiner, who was also joined by his 79-year-old father, Mort, and his stepmother at the Seventh Heaven Street Fair.

Overall, the reception was glowing for the comeback pol, with many passers-by stopping to share stories about being in Mr. Weiner's mom's class back when she taught high school math or reminiscing about growing up together in the neighborhood.

"You've got my vote," shouted one woman as she passed. "Hey Anthony, you're the only one that can win and keep us on the right track!" yelled another.

Anthony Weiner and son.

"We've got your back," said Dominick Mattina, 74, another resident, who had nothing but good things to say about the recently-announced mayoral candidate and said he planned to vote for him this fall. "I always liked him ... The way he talks, the way he acts. And he helps the people out--that's the best."

Mr. Mattina dismissed the sexting scandal that forced Mr. Weiner to resign from Congress two years ago.

"That's all publicity. That's all it was," he said, suggesting the racy photos had been leaked by detractors. "People don't want him so they knock him down. They go chasing all their background. That's got nothing to do with the kind of person you are."

He also dismissed the other Democratic candidates running, including City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who lives in Park Slope himself. “A lot of them are B.S., you know?" Mr. Mattina said, painting Mr. Weiner as an outsider. "I don't trust them."

Maude Brown, who lives in Kensington, told Mr. Weiner that she'd urged him to run for mayor back when she met him years ago. "Finally!" she exclaimed, wishing him luck after signing his petition. "I never wanted him to resign. I would have toughed it out."

"He's fairly progressive. And I think for the city, they need somebody who's got a lot of chutzpah and charisma," said Ms. Brown. "At the moment, I would say he's my number one."

Myrna Tirado, 25, a former student of Mr. Weiner's mom who now works as a banker, also said Mr. Weiner had her vote. "I wish him the best of luck," she said. "I hope he wins."

She further praised Mr. Weiner for being "honest and truthful with the public," despite the fact that he repeatedly lied to cover up the now-infamous Twitter photo he accidentally sent out publicly.

"I just figured it was out of fear," she offered when asked about the attempted cover-up. "I mean, he was afraid, I guess, to let everyone now because he was afraid of what everyone would think. But at the end, he came out with the truth."

Anthony Weiner greeting a voter.

For his part, Mr. Weiner said the decision to bring Jordan along was simply the result of scheduling and said his wife, Huma Abedin, would be joining him on the campaign trail "soon."

"It was my day to watch him. Plus, it's Father's Day and we were visiting his grandfather in the neighborhood, so it worked out well," he told reporters after Jordan had been taken away by his grandparents, to Mr. Weiner's relief.

The lengthy street fair also attracted other politicians, including Senator Chuck Schumer, who was greeting voters just two blocks from the high-profile mayoral contender, but said he had no plans to stop by to say hello to Mr. Weiner, who once worked in his office.

"Much too early to talk about the mayoral race," Mr. Schumer explained. "So that's all I'm saying."

Christine Quinn. (Photo: Getty Images)

You can call Christine Quinn many things, but according to the City Council speaker, "establishment candidate" isn't one of them.

In an interview with WNYC's Brian Lehrer this morning, the host suggested she might be the most establishment-friendly Democrat in the mayor's race, an argument Ms. Quinn promptly shot down as she insisted her progressive roots, in fact, run deep.

"I can't tell you how unfair I think that is," insisted Ms. Quinn. "If you look at the record of what I've done, it's been about moving this city forward to make it a better place."

Last week, one of Ms. Quinn's rivals,  Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, insisted on the same radio show that he deserved the mantle of most progressive candidate--drawing the ire of the arguably more left-leaning City Comptroller John Liu. But Ms. Quinn insisted that she, too, has progressive credentials.

"Look, I am very proud of my life’s work as a progressive," she said, pointing to her background as a tenants' rights organizer, a crime victims' advocate and fighter for reproductive and LGBT rights. “I want to be known as the most effective candidate in this race, the one who's gotten the most done for New Yorkers."

Ms. Quinn then argued that her record proved that she actually can deliver on the progressive promises that she makes in the mayoral campaign.

“Labels of course matter. But delivering matters more," she explained. "And I don't want to battle for a label. I want to battle to get things done for New York."

A demonstration outside the Bronx mayoral forum in support of the Upper East Side transfer station.

It appears the gloves are finally off.

At a forum in the Bronx on Wednesday, Sal Albanese accused Public Advocate Bill de Blasio of fibbing, disputing his assertion that a garbage transfer station in Red Hook was actually within "walking distance" of Mr. de Blasio's Park Slope home. And in a rare moment in the endless parade of forums, Mr. de Blasio, actually shot back.

"Sal, Sal, I have long tolerated your reconfigurations of the truth and I actually can walk easily from my house at 11th Street and 6th Avenue to the Hamilton Avenue station," Mr. de Blasio sharply told his lesser-known rival and fellow Brooklynite at the contentious forum. "I guarantee it Sal, I'll come walk with you one day."

For Mr. de Blasio, it represented what may be a turning point for himself and his Democratic rivals in the increasingly tight primary: they are becoming more willing to go on the attack against each other in person.

Just as Mr. de Blasio previously ignored Mr. Albanese's jabs at his character and record, Council Speaker Christine Quinn seemed to tire of brushing off constant broadsides from Mr. de Blasio. And Bill Thompson, not typically the focal point of any verbal clashes, found himself enduring  the wrath of Mr. de Blasio and even members of the crowd at Hostos Community College in the South Bronx.

(Anthony Weiner, barring moments when he drew boos and catcalls from the crowd for speaking out against a proposed Upper East Side trash transfer station, managed to avoid the fray.)

"I have to take issue with Speaker Quinn saying that she wants to differentiate from Bloomberg's policy on this because she has been the mayor's chief ally while he's been doing this," Mr. de Blasio said at one point, responding to a question about the supposed inadequate funding of Latino nonprofits. “The third term was brought to us by Speaker Quinn working in cooperation with Mayor Bloomberg to change the term limits law."

Ms. Quinn, a strained smile on her face, hit back at Mr. de Blasio for doing little more than issuing a "press release" to prevent nonprofit cuts from his less-powerful perch as public advocate

"When the mayor had a proposal out there to close down senior centers ... with my colleagues I didn't just criticize it. I just didn't have a press conference; I stopped it," Ms. Quinn said. "Last year, when there was proposal to close daycare centers all over the city, ones in the Bronx and communities of color that didn't score well enough on the [request for proposals], we didn't just issue a press release, we put that money back in the budget ... So that's what it's about, not way you say, not what you promise, what you've done."

"I just have to have a 'get real moment' here," replied the public advocate. "You can't say you brought back the mayor back for a third term and you made things a little less bad. It doesn't work that way."

"It does," Ms. Quinn began, as applause drowned her out. "If you're one of those parents who still has a daycare center to go, if you're one those daycare workers who has a job, if you're one of those children who's learning in the same environment because of what I did with my colleagues last year, that's what you care about."

The forum, hosted by several Hispanic organizations including the newspaper El Diaro, encouraged the Democrats to clash on a variety of issues that impact the city's growing Latino community, including immigration and the distribution of garbage transfer stations in the five boroughs. The proposed construction of a waste transfer station on the Upper East Side of Manhattan has become a hot-button issue of the primary. Advocates of the station, including protesters at the forum, argue it forces higher-income neighborhoods to finally share the burden of dealing with the city's trash. Detractors say the Manhattan station will destroy a park and hurt residents who live in a nearby housing project.

While Ms. Quinn and Mr. Thompson have already fought over the station, Mr. Thompson's opposition to the construction was questioned by another rival and openly challenged by furious spectators in the auditorium.

"Go visit the site, it bisects a development for children, Asphalt Green, the rail runs down the middle of Asphalt Green ... It is a bad site," Mr. Thompson said as boos rained down upon him. "We need to move forward in reducing the number of sites in African-American and Latino communities ... We need to look at other sites as a part of the larger, solid waste plan."

After Ms. Quinn defended the Upper East Side station--Mr. Thompson interrupted her several times, blurting out, "this is not true" and "we can find other sites"-- Mr. de Blasio took a rare shot at Mr. Thompson.

"I have to say, with absolute respect to Bill Thompson, you can't have it both ways on this issue," he said. "The site has to stay there--there's no two ways about it."

Christine Quinn posing with charter school kids outside the forum Tuesday night.

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and former Comptroller Bill Thompson both pulled out of a mayoral forum hosted by charter school advocates at the last minute Tuesday--earning the ire of audience members who accused them of being too scared of crossing the powerful teachers' union a week before their endorsement vote.

Mr. de Blasio dropped out less than an hour before he was supposed to appear on stage, and Mr. Thompson pulled his RSVP Tuesday afternoon, according to an event organizer.

"We are disappointed that the more than 800 families who came from across the City tonight didn't get to hear a diversity of opinions because some candidates weren't able to talk about where they agree and disagree with school reform," Jeremiah Kittredge, the Executive Director of Families for Excellent Schools, the group that hosted the forum, said in a statement.

Parents in the audience booed when they heard the news.

"I think they showed a lack of courage. And it's also insulting to the people who organized this," said fellow candidate and former City Councilman Sal Albanese, who called the cancellation showed a "lack of class."

"Unless there's real extenuating circumstances ... I think they're afraid of facing charter school parents because they may alienate the United Federation of Teachers that is going to make an endorsement very soon,"  he concluded.

A spokeswoman for Mr. Thompson, who has attended the vast majority of this year's many forums, blamed his cancellation on a scheduling conflict. Mr. de Blasio, usually a diligent attendee (minus a Crain's New York Business forum), did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But both men have been heavily courting the UFT, which is set to endorse next week.

While the two are often darlings at traditional public school forums where their attacks on charter school founders and calls for a moratorium for co-locations win loud applause, Tuesday's forum was a very different world.

There, in a Salvation Army auditorium on West 14th Street, the crowd applauded loudly for the more moderate approaches of ex-Congressman Anthony Weiner and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who was mobbed after she spoke by little girls eager for autographs and hoping to pose for photos with the woman who, if elected, would become the city's first female mayor.

On stage, Ms. Quinn seemed relaxed and friendly (as if she were chatting with friends over coffee, as one attendee described), mostly stuck to touting her education accomplishments, including a new pilot program that will lengthen the school day at some schools, and previously announced ideas like replacing textbooks with tablets. She also chided the current mayor, a close ally, for failing to make parents feel engaged

As Council speaker and candidate, she said she's heard from too many parent who "feel like their voice not only isn't heard, isn't wanted." She added, "I don't just want to hear it. I need to hear it," arguing that parents should have a direct line into the mayors office.

"You know, there's not a lot I miss about Rudy Giuiani. But he used to go out and have all these town halls in communities, which were a good thing, 'cause people got an opportunity to speak directly to the mayor," said Ms. Quinn who herself recently came under fire for skipping another education forum hosted by a group extremely hostile to the current administration.

Anthony Weiner on stage at the charter school forum.

The reception was also positive for Mr. Weiner, who appeared perfectly at home on the grand red-draped stage, standing and gesturing with his arms as he answered questions about how to deal with failing schools, co-locations (an option) and whether charter schools should have to pay rent (no).

Mr. Weiner, for his part, called on both charter advocates and their opponents to ratchet down the rhetoric, which has often placed charter schools and traditional public schools at odds.

"The fight and the choice between quality public schools and the charter movement is a false one that I think has been perpetuated too long ... It's also been perpetuated too long by the people in this room," said Mr. Weiner, who noted charters comprise only about five percent of the city's 1.1 million students. "I am gonna try to turn down the temperature on this conversation to get a place that it's less us against them."

But the son a school teacher did make one revelation: that he failed freshman math in high school. ("I was forced to walk with my tail behind my legs and ask my mother for help," he recalled.)

Still, he also declined to jump into the fray over the Bills' absences.

"None of us can make it to everything. All I can do is be accountable for my own schedule," he said.