Anthony Weiner hugs a man in Harlem during his campaign kick-off. (Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

It began outside a subway station in Harlem, where Anthony Weiner greeted–and embraced—New Yorkers on their way to work.

Next, he eschewed the Memorial Day parade in his old district for a sparsely-attended black church service in Southeast Queens and a veterans ceremony in the Bronx's Co-op City. And this weekend, he slammed stop-and-frisk at Rev. Al Sharpton's weekly National Action Network rally, earning loud applause from the mostly-black crowd.

Mr. Weiner’s spokeswoman, Barbara Morgan, insisted it's too soon to talk about strategy nearly three weeks into the ex-congressman’s comeback race. But the campaign’s carefully-curated stops, which typically number fewer than his rivals—might also reveal something about the polling that convinced him to jump into the race in the first place.

Voter research conducted by one rival campaign revealed an interesting finding: that black voters seemed to be more forgiving of Mr. Weiner's online dalliances than other groups.

“Our analysis is that there’s a bit of a trend of African-American voters being more sympathetic to people who have experienced scandal--Democratic politicians who have been vilified by the right and beat up in a way that feels like they’re being vilified in the press,” said one Democratic operative, pointing to the reaction to scandals involving former President Bill Clinton and Congressman Charlie Rangel.

“There’s clearly something there where higher rates of voters in the African-American community seem to be willing to forgive him,” he said. “They feel like these people haven’t betrayed us on the issues, ... they were good on the issues, but messed up in personal failure and now are getting treated in an unfair way.”

The theory also seems to be backed up by the polls. The most recent Marist survey, for instance, found that 66 percent of African-Americans surveyed believe Mr. Weiner deserves a second chance, compared with 45 percent of whites and 55 percent of Latino voters. Just 27 percent of blacks told pollsters Mr. Weiner didn't have the character to be mayor--versus nearly 50 percent of whites.

Anthony Weiner supporters petitioning in Harlem this weekend. (Photo: Jill Colvin)

And a May 22 Quinnipiac poll found that while Mr. Weiner was favored by just 11 percent of whites voters, he had the support of 20 percent of black voters—besting every other candidate—including former Comptroller Bill Thompson, the contest's only African-American candidate, who garnered just 13 percent of the black vote.

In fact, Mr. Weiner, the only Jewish candidate in the race, doesn't fare nearly as well among the Jewish voters he's been courting, the Marist poll found.

It was the same way during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, when black lawmakers and voters rallied around Mr. Clinton, according to reports from the time. One Washington Post poll, for instance, found that, in the scandal’s aftermath, 94 percent of African-Americans believed Mr. Clinton was a strong leader, versus just 62 percent of white respondents. They also gave Mr. Clinton higher ratings “in virtually every category including job approval, trustworthiness and his ability to relate to average Americans,” the paper wrote.

Chet Whye, a Harlem community activist who saw Mr. Weiner speak Saturday at Mr. Sharpton's House of Justice, said that he has long been a fan of Mr. Weiner and said he was among those who had already dismissed the Twitter scandal that forced Mr. Weiner to resign from Congress two years ago.

"If this guy's gonna be good for this city, that's all that matters to me," he explained, arguing that many officials he respects have also made mistakes. "We've had great leadership come out of people who are flawed. Look at Bill Clinton. To me, it's something--it was stupid. He acknowledges that. I'm past it."

He also noted Mr. Weiner's first campaign stop at the corner of 125th Street and Lenox Avenue. "That was a signal to us that we were not going to be ignored," he said. "He could have been anywhere. He came here."

Peter Bailey, another black voter who lives on the Upper West Side, agreed he wouldn't hold the scandal against Mr. Weiner and would instead look to the candidates' policy proposals. But he said the idea that black voters were more inclined to forgive rang true.

"I think black people traditionally have a feeling for those that come out of the cave still fighting," he said. "That's the position that black folks come out of so we can always relate to somebody fighting when they've been kicked down."

In addition to helping shed light on Mr. Weiner's strategy, the numbers might also put an interesting wrench in the conventional wisdom that Mr. Weiner’s jump into the race is most damaging for City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (by making a run-off nearly guaranteed) and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio (who, the theory goes, is targeting the same middle-class, outer-borough, progressive voters as Mr. Weiner).

Perhaps Mr. Weiner is also a threat to Mr. Thompson—whose campaign has most enthusiastically embraced Mr. Weiner with open arms? The Thompson campaign however, dismissed the early polls, which have historically under-counted support for minority candidates.

"Before Anthony ever got in, I predicted he'd be in second place and he still is, because these polls measure one thing right now - name recognition, no more and no less," Mr. Thompson's chief strategist Jonathan Prince said in a statement. "Bill Thompson's numbers are underweighted because polls consistently underestimate minority turnout and support."

(It's worth noting the other candidates have been making plays for minority voters, too. Ms. Quinn, for instance, has been courting Hispanic women, while Mr. de Blasio, whose wife is black, has picked up endorsements from the heavily minority Local 1199 SEIU and New York Communities for Change.)

For his part, Mr. Weiner rebuffed the idea that there was any motivation behind his stops, portraying the campaign’s strategy as a largely on-the-fly, by-the-bootstraps effort.

“Some of it is how enthusiastic the invite it … And some it is just like how it feels, you know. We chose that church ‘cause that particular church had an interesting story,” he told Politicker recently when asked about how he was choosing his stops.

“We’re going to get to everywhere. And some of it just based on our bandwidth as an organization. We’re kind of like a start-up at this point," he added. "The driver knows one neighborhood, we’re like, ‘Ok! That looks good to me!’”

Anthony Weiner speaking at the House of Justice this weekend. (Photo: Jill Colvin)

Consultant Bill Cunningham, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's former communications director, also cautioned that it’s too early to read much into the schedule tea leaves and early polls—aside from a general desire by the candidate to appear engaged with voters city-wide.

“What he’s saying by doing that is that he’s going to be campaigning throughout the city. He’s not just relying on his old bastions of Brooklyn and Queens … and this is how I prove it,” Mr. Cunningham explained.

It also sends a message that Mr. Weiner is out of hiding two years after he was forced to resign.

For Mr. Weiner, Mr. Cunningham said the strategy shows, “I’m here, I’m out, I’m with real people.”

Ruben Diaz Jr. is endorsing Robert Jackson for Manhattan borough president. (Photo: Flickr/Ruben Diaz, Jr.)

Likely Manhattan voters will begin receiving rob0-calls today from Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., announcing his endorsement of Councilman Robert Jackson in the Manhattan borough presidents race.

Mr. Jackson is facing a trio of well-known challengers in his race to replace Scott Stringer: former Lower Manhattan Community Board 1 Chair Julie Menin, Upper West Side Councilwoman Gale Brewer and Upper East Side Councilwoman Jessica Lappin. As the only African-American candidate, Mr. Jackson is focusing on solidifying black and Latino support in Upper Manhattan, which he's represented in the Council for more than a decade.

Ms. Menin has already been endorsed by several significant Latino elected officials, including Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez, State Sen. Adriano Espaillat, Assemblywoman Gabriela Rosa and Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez--making Mr. Diaz Jr.'s backing even more notable.

In the 55-second call, an enthusiastic Mr. Diaz Jr., who has also endorsed former Comptroller Bill Thompson for mayor, praises Mr. Jackson's "energy, integrity and passion" and highlights his record on education. (He is the chair of the council's education committee.)

Here's a transcript of the calls that likely voters will be receiving:

"Hello, this is Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. calling to let you know that I am supporting Robert Jackson to be Manhattan Borough President. You see, I know what it takes to be a Borough President, and Robert Jackson has the energy, the integrity and passion to be a great one. He's a leader who knows how to get things done and has a record to prove it: fighting for the best education for all of our children, more jobs and better conditions for our workers, and safer homes and streets for all of us. He will be a great and strong fighter for all of Manhattan. And you can find out more about his candidacy at Jackson2013 dot com. Again, this is Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. asking you to join me on the campaign trail to elect Robert Jackson as the next Manhattan Borough President. Thank you."

Mr. Diaz Jr. will also be attending events with Mr. Jackson throughout the summer, a campaign source said.

Listen below:

(Photo: Getty)

Comptroller John Liu is finally ready to take the plunge.

Mr. Liu, the last of the remaining major Democratic mayoral candidates who has yet to declare his electoral intentions, will formally announce his candidacy Sunday afternoon, according to multiple sources.

Although Mr. Liu's campaign is still an unofficial one, that hasn't stopped him from attending forums and debates for the mayor's race, and the announcement will not come as a surprise to observers who have come to see his candidacy as inevitable.

One of Mr. Liu's rivals in the Democratic primary, Council Speaker Christine Quinn, announced her own campaign last Sunday, while Public Advocate Bill de Blasio formalized his bid in January and former Comptroller Bill Thompson made his intentions clear in a series of interviews at the start of 2010.

Mr. Liu's main campaign press contact, who operates out of an unnamed email account, did not return a request for comment earlier this morning.

Update (6:18 p.m.): Mr. Liu's anonymous campaign spokesperson confirmed the news with the following note:

Thanks for starting that buzz with your post, Colin!

Yes, announcement will be Sunday.

Congressman Crowley addresses the crowd.

Earlier this evening, outspoken Councilman Peter Vallone officially launched his campaign for campaign for Queens Borough President. And, standing before an incredibly packed Greek restaurant in Astoria, both Mr. Vallone and his supporters made sure everyone was fully aware of the self-described conservative Democrat's independent streak.

"He was able to stand up to the Speaker when she was trying to bully him," said Norman Seabrook, the President of the New York City Correction Officers' Benevolent Association who officially endorsed Mr. Vallone today. "Can you imagine what he would do as borough president when given the opportunity to step forward, not only for the people in this room, but this borough? He is truly a man indicative of being able to become one of the greatest of all time."

For his part, Mr. Vallone touted his "fighter" credentials, comparing himself favorably to Mr. Seabrook and recounting his various political battles, including his high-profile, yet ultimately unsuccessful effort to stop Council Speaker Christine Quinn from renaming the Queensboro Bridge after former Mayor Ed Koch.

"He is a fighter and I am a fighter. I know how Norman fights and I use him as an example when I fight," Mr. Vallone said. "Norman knows who was out there--who was the loudest voice--when Queens didn't have the streets plowed. When we had the blackout of '06. Norman knows who stood up to the Mayor, who stood up to Con Ed. Norman knows who stood up to the Speaker and the Mayor when they took the Queensboro Bridge from us. No one else had the guts to do that."

And even though he is known to ruffle feathers, a bit of the political establishment was also present at today's event. Congressman Joe Crowley, the head of the Queens Democratic Party who has attended the campaign kickoffs of several of Mr. Vallone's rivals, effusively extolled Mr. Vallone while stating his current neutrality in the race.

"The Vallone family tradition goes way way back," Mr. Crowley said, heaping compliments on Mr. Vallone's father, former Council Speaker Peter Vallone, Sr. "Peter Vallone has been an outstanding and great city councilman. We know that there's a future for Peter Vallone in New York City politics. Although I haven't yet made decisions, seeing the presence that's here this evening sends a loud message as well, and I appreciate it. The way I look at it, no matter what I do, I'll make one ingrate and a lot of people mad at me. But that's the nature of politics."

"I've been known to be a pretty good ingrate," Mr. Vallone chimed in. "By the way."

The photo that illustrated the Breitbart.com story on Herman Cain.

The news that former presidential candidate Herman Cain joined Fox News as a contributor last month got some negative reviews from media pundits and one Breitbart.com writer believes the criticism of Mr. Cain is racist and comparable to the violence inflicted on African-American protesters during the Civil Rights movement. In an article that appeared Friday on "Big Journalism," the media section of the conservative web network started by the late Andrew Breitbart, writer John Nolte compared members of the "media establishment" who have criticized Mr. Cain to infamous Alabama lawman Eugene "Bull" Connor, who notoriously ordered fire hoses and police dogs to be used against anti-Jim Crow protesters.

"No one is claiming Herman Cain is perfect, but there is no question he is currently being singled out as the sexualized clownish idiot based solely on the color of his skin. This is what the left and elite media always do to those who 'don't know their place,'" Mr. Nolte wrote. "In the segregated South, racist whites (almost all of them Democrats) used the exact same tactics to keep blacks from obtaining political power. The only difference is that today "Bull" Connor (another Democrat) is the media establishment, the dogs are the likes of Chuck Todd, Joe Scarborough, and Howard Kurtz, and the fire hose is The Narrative."

To hammer Mr. Nolte's point home, an accompanying photo showed a dramatic, vintage image of African-Americans being battered with a high-pressure hose.

Mr. Nolte based his argument on several reports that referenced the series of sex scandals that ultimately derailed Mr. Cain and a Baltimore Sun article that described Mr. Cain as lacking "mental dexterity and nimbleness." He also highlighted a Tweet from comedian and television host Bill Maher mocking the scandals by joking that Mr. Cain, "likes working with Fox team, particularly some of them fine-ass white women they got there." According to Mr. Nolte, this reception was clear indication of a pattern where "the left and the media" attempt to engage in a campaign of "othering" Mr. Cain by questioning his intelligence or characterizing him as "an over-sexualized black predator." Mr. Nolte contrasts this with the treatment of scandal-scarred liberal pundits including ex-CNN and Current TV host Eliot Spitzer, who resigned as governor in New York due to a prostitution flap.

"This is the same media that have  embraced a number of controversial figures tainted by scandal," wrote Mr. Nolte.

Of course, when Mr. Spitzer landed his media jobs, there was no shortage of media coverage that focused on and even mocked his scandalous past.

Mr. Cain certainly has taken some hits in the media media, but he most certainly hasn't faced any violence. Politicker reached out to Mr. Nolte and Breitbart.com Editor-in-Chief Joel Pollak to see whether they thought comparing the treatment of Mr. Cain to Jim Crow atrocities could be seen as trivializing the violence of that era. As of this writing, we have yet to receive a response.

Dov Hikind and his family in their Purim costumes. (Photo: Facebook)

Assemblyman Dov Hikind held a press conference in front of his home this afternoon responding to the uproar over a story that first appeared on Politicker today about his "black basketball player" Purim costume. In front of a small crowd of reporters, Mr. Hikind apologized that people were "offended" and reiterated his initial defense that the getup, which consisted of an orange jersey, brown face paint, an afro wig and sunglasses was merely a costume to celebrate the Jewish Purim holiday. However, even after Mr. Hikind addressed the firestorm, several members of the City Council sent letters to the Assemblyman arguing his apology did not go far enough.

"Anyone who was offended by the outfit that I was wearing on Purim yesterday ... it was not meant to offend anyone or hurt anyone in any fashion," Mr. Hikind began. "That is not what I am all about for the past 31 years in pub office and before that."

Mr. Hikind went on to describe how "hundreds and hundreds of people" came to his home during the fourteen hour party for which he donned the costume yesterday. He said "the whole idea" of the costume was "not to be recognizable."

"Anyone who was offended, I'm sorry that they were offended. That was not the intention and that's really all I can say," continued Mr. Hikind. "I just have to reiterate, it was Purim. Purim is when people get dressed up and try to look different."

The Assemblyman also assured the crowd of reporters gathered in front of his home that his costume "was never about a racial thing."

"If I was black, I might have asked the makeup person who I hire every single year and said, 'Make me look white this year. I want to look differently, I just dont want people to recognize me,'" said Mr. Hikind, referencing his tradition of hiring a makeup artist to help him prepare for the Purim festivites. "It wasn't about white, it wasn't about black, it wasn't about anything like that. So, you know, in hindsight seeing that all of you guys are out here today and this has become a real story, my God, you know I would have picked something else."

Mr. Hikind also discussed rethinking his future Purim costume choices with the New York Times.

“Next year I was thinking I’d be an Indian,” Mr. Hikind said. “But you know, I’ve changed my mind about that. I don’t think that’s a good idea. Somebody will be offended.”

Mr. Hikind's apologies clearly did not satisfy the members of the City Council's Black Latino and Asian Caucus. After the press conference, Councilmen Robert Jackson and Fernando Cabrera, the co-chairs of the 27 member Caucus sent a letter to Mr. Hikind on behalf of the group asking him to make a "true and real public apology" and meet with community leaders.

"We write, as the Black, Latino & Asian Caucus of the New York City Council, to directlyaddress the incident involving your donning of blackface at a party, and your sentimentssuggesting that no offense should be taken," the letter said. "We find it deeply disturbing that, not only didyou make the conscious decision to wear the offensive costume, but your commentsfollowing the media blowback suggest that you have no consideration for the history of  blackface and the trivialization of the black experience in this country."

Councilman Jumaane Williams, who is a member of the BLA Caucus, went a step further and sent another letter to Mr. Hikind co-signed by seven other Council members and Karim Camara, chairman of the minority caucus in the State Assembly. That letter also called for Mr. Hikind to make a "sincere public apology" and meet with community leaders.

"Your costume is offensive to a significant segment of this borough for its connection to the sordid history of blackface in American theater. People associate blackface with offensive African-American stereotypes popularized in minstrel shows and vaudeville, stereotypes such as laziness, stupidity and cowardice. In fact, this same art form negatively depicted other communities, including the bigoted portrayal of Jews as corrupt and conniving," the letter said. Not only have you appeared publicly in blackface, you have offered an initially fierce defense of your actions, declaring on your blog that 'this is political correctness to the absurd.' This is a disconcerting response, especially when we consider that on multiple occasions you have come out to loudly defend the Jewish community against real and perceived indignities."

Dov Hikind and his family in their Purim costumes. (Photo: Facebook)

Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind is standing by his decision to don a Purim costume that some people have described as offensive "blackface." The outfit, which consisted of brown face paint, an afro wig and sunglasses in what Mr. Hikind described as a representation of a "black basketball player"provoked widespread outrage after Politicker first wrote about it this morning. However, in a post on his personal website bluntly titled "It's Purim. People Dress Up," Mr. Hikind argued his critics don't understand the nature of the Purim holiday, a costume and wine-fueled reverie commemorating a time when Jewish people living in Persia were saved from extermination.

"Yes, I wore a costume on Purim and hosted a party," Mr. Hikind wrote. "Most of the people who attended also wore costumes. Everywhere that Purim was being celebrated, people wore costumes. It was Purim. People dress up."

Mr. Hikind went on to say he is not prejudiced against any ethnic group.

"I am intrigued that anyone who understands Purim—or for that matter understands me—would have a problem with this," wrote Mr. Hikind. "This is political correctness to the absurd. There is not a prejudiced bone in my body."

(Pesach Osina)

One power broker in southeast Queens fears that the next City Council candidate to represent the 31st Council district will be a “young Jewish boy.”

In order to prevent Pesach Osina, an Orthodox Jewish former staffer to Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder, from winning the election, Bishop Charles Norris, founder of the Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church, is urging some of the eight other candidates to step aside. The seat in the majority black district was left open when James Sanders was elected to the State Senate and next week's special election to replace him has attracted a crowded field.

“The black vote would be split among the six or seven candidates,” Mr. Norris told Politicker yesterday. “Since Jews vote in a bloc, as they usually do—and there’s nothing wrong with that—the young Jewish boy in the Rockaways would win.”

As one of the most influential religious leaders in the area, Mr. Norris is known for his fiery pronouncements and pessimistic attitude about the ability of the booming Orthodox Jewish enclave in Far Rockaway to peacefully coexist with the long-time black majority.

When asked if Mr. Osina’s victory would be a detriment to the black community, Mr. Norris laughed at the idea anyone wouldn't see how the election of a candidate who wasn't African-American would be problematic for the area's black community.

“Why would it be a detriment for him to win?” he asked. “Are you serious about that question? What has been happening in the Rockaways all the time is most of the people who have lived in that area are not Jewish. They don’t get the services that they really need, let alone deserve. If you think that electing someone who is not African-American is going to provide the kind of services that they need, you are sadly mistaken.”

According to one well-connected southeast Queens operative, Mr. Osina’s victory over the seven other candidates, who are all black, is a very real possibility. While the front-runner in the race, Mr. Sanders’s former chief of staff Donovan Richards, has amassed a bevy of labor endorsements and has far out-raised his competitors, rivals like Jacques Leandre (whom Mr. Norris endorsed), Michael Duncan and Selvena Brooks could cut into Mr. Richards’s African-American base. Meanwhile, one Far Rockaway Orthodox source estimated that the neighborhood's Jewish community boasts a solid bloc of 3,500 registered voters. Though that's a relatively small number, Mr. Sanders triumphed in his 2009 primary with a little over 3,000 votes. Hurricane Sandy, which devastated the district at the end of last year, may also have lingering effects on turnout reducing the number of votes needed to win the race.

As of this writing, Mr. Osina did not respond to requests for comment on this story.

(Photo: Getty)

Quinnipiac University Polling Institute is out with another survey of New York City voters today and Council Speaker Christine Quinn, with 35 percent of the vote, still posts a wide margin over her main Democratic rivals in the campaign for City Hall. Public Advocate Bill de Blasio came in second with 11 percent, followed by former Comptroller Bill Thompson at 10 percent and Comptroller John Liu's 9 percent.

"Council Speaker Christine Quinn still dominates the Democratic field," Maurice Carroll, the polling firm's director, said in a statement. “There is almost no gender gap for any candidate. For example, Quinn gets 36 percent of women and 34 percent of men, while Liu gets 10 percent of men and 9 percent of women."

The fact that Ms. Quinn leads isn't surprising since she held a similar number--32 percent--in Quinnipiac's November poll. Other than Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer dropping out of the field, there have been few significant developments in the race. Indeed, of the four Democrats polled, only Mr. Thompson has officially kicked off his campaign for  Gracie Mansion.

On the Republican side of the aisle, things have changed substantively since November, with former MTA Chairman Joe Lhota ramping up his mayoral efforts and receiving a relatively large amount of press coverage as a result. At 23 percent of the vote, Mr. Lhota now leads his primary, confining the other Republican candidates to single digits. In the general election, however, Mr. Lhota gets crushed--although slightly less painfully than in Quinnipiac's last poll that found Mr. Lhota trailing "Unnamed Democrat" 60 percent to 9 percent. In today's survey, Mr. Lhota holds roughly 18 percent in a match-up with leading Democrats, who have support ranging from 55 percent to 62 percent against him.

"The top three Democrats all thump Lhota. We limit the matchups to candidates who show some strength in their primaries," Mr. Carroll said. "New York City is a very blue city. Any Republican who wants to follow in the footsteps of Mayors Rudolph Giuliani or Michael Bloomberg will need to win lots of Democratic and independent voters."

Of course, it should be noted that polls taken this far out, especially of notoriously fluid multi-candidate primary fields, are mostly a test of name recognition, and the campaign itself is certain to shake things up once it is officially underway and voters are actually paying attention. Nevertheless, Ms. Quinn's dominating 64-18 percent approval rating among all of the city's voters is a serious challenge her opponents will have to surmount.

Read more here.

(Photo: Getty)

Late last night, The New York Times broke the news that M.T.A. Chairman Joe Lhota is considering entering next year's mayoral race as a Republican, and is being strongly urged by former Mayor Rudy Giuliani to do so. Since Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, is Mr. Lhota's boss and the chairman was beside him at a press conference this afternoon, a reporter asked the governor about this possibility. Needless to say, Mr. Cuomo does not sound not interested in adding to his current political complications he's already dealing with in Albany.

"I'm going to try to stay out of the politics of New York City if I can avoid it," Mr. Cuomo replied. Pressed on whether he will make any endorsement whatsoever, he succinctly added, "I'm not expecting to, no."

Of course, Mr. Cuomo's statement allows plenty of wiggle room down the road, especially, one would imagine, if Democratic prospects end up worse than they appear and his party needs a boost from the popular governor.

Besides indicating his intention to avoid touching the mayor's race with a ten-foot pole, Mr. Cuomo did manage to heap praise on Mr. Lhota's service in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, along with a word of warning for any aspiring elected official.

"I would like to see Mr. Lhota do what Mr. Lhota wants to do," he said. "He has done an extraordinary job as head of the M.T.A, the entire region got to see that during the storm at Sandy. I knew how well he was performing but they actually saw his performance, so whatever he would like to do, I think he should do. I admire that he enjoys public service. I would caution him on elected office, however, because it is a nasty process to go through."