The following is a list of endorsements for Fernando Ferrer for the Democratic nomination for mayor of New York City from newspapers, civic groups, unions and other labor organizations and politicians. It was culled largely from his Web site, but also from newspaper accounts and Internet searches. This is not intended to be comprehensive. It is also a work in progress. If you know of any additional endorsements, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
NEWPAPERS
The New York Times
After ruling out Weiner and Fields, the Times editorial said: "Gifford Miller, the City Council speaker, and Fernando Ferrer, the former Bronx borough president, are the strongest contenders, but their qualifications are very different. Mr. Miller has been more forceful in the current campaign, but then, inanimate objects have been as dynamic as Mr. Ferrer, who made a few gaffes early on and then retreated into a cocoon of sound bites. Both men have a wide understanding of the city's problems, but you would never know it from listening to Mr. Ferrer mechanically repeat the same meaningless catchphrases.
"Mr. Ferrer, however, has demonstrated a willingness to treat the financial challenges facing the city as something more than an invitation to dodge the issue. We disagree with his proposal for a temporary tax on stock trades to finance education, but we appreciate the fact that he is, at least, willing to take the heat for a hard choice....
"When it comes to experience, Mr. Miller has a generally good, if spotty, record in his current job. Mr. Ferrer presided in the Bronx during the borough's greatest resurgence. Although other officials deserve much of the credit for the Bronx's comeback, Mr. Ferrer can count his work there as a considerable achievement. Mr. Ferrer has made his way in politics in a borough that has always been troubled by bossism, and issues of corruption and the waves of dubious political activity have sometimes washed close. The Times recently reported that a friend of Mr. Ferrer's, someone who was jailed for soliciting payoffs on behalf of a powerful state senator, had been overheard in wiretaps promising that contributions to Mr. Ferrer would be rewarded with government contracts. (A spokesman for the candidate said Mr. Ferrer had no knowledge of the calls, which occurred when he was borough president.)
"If Mr. Ferrer is going to be a decent candidate in the fall, he's going to have to start talking like the intelligent public servant he used to be. Mr. Miller, on the other hand, would have to learn how to resist the temptation to take ethical shortcuts just because money is tight. If we're going to make a leap of faith, we prefer to do it with Mr. Ferrer. He gets our endorsement in the Democratic primary."
El Diario
Fernando Ferrer has the ability to energize and inspire us, and to remind us that the prosperity that is being enjoyed by some New Yorkers must be available to all New Yorkers. Ferrer has the experience and the track record to get things done. As a Puerto Rican in a city that is 27 percent Hispanic and growing, he represents the city's present and its future. For all these reasons we endorse Fernando Ferrer for the Democratic nomination for Mayor.
CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS
ACORN
(The New York branch of the national community action group) "We believe in Freddy Ferrer because he believes in our people. He has stood with us on housing, on education and for living wage jobs. He understands us. We are fighters - and so is Freddy Ferrer," said Bertha Lewis, executive director of New York ACORN. "We look forward to working shoulder to shoulder with Freddy, door-to-door in neighborhoods across our city.
UNIONS AND OTHER LABOR GROUPS
100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care
Comunication Workers of America
Represents workers in a variety of fields including telecommunications, health care, printing, manufacturing, higher education and government
Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA), Local 1000 of AFSCME
State's largest state employees union, representing correction, social service, health care and other workers
Organization of Staff Analysts
Represents some professional workers in more than 50 city agencies
Principals
(Council of School Supervisors and Administrators)
NYPD Guardians
An African-American organization within the police department that works to recruit, hire and promote more black in the department and to combat police brutality.
POLITICIANS
City Comptroller William Thompson
"[Ferrer] understands the challenges many New Yorkers face because he has lived them. That is why he is fighting to build a city where every New Yorker has access to hope and opportunity - that includes the opportunity to get a good job and earn a living wage, the opportunity to live in housing that an average family can afford, and the opportunity for all of our children to gain equal access to the benefits of an excellent education."
Former presidential candidate Al Sharpton, who waited to make this endorsement until two days before the primary. "I wanted to support someone that I felt was strong enough to face a 9/11 attack but also compassionate enough to make sure poor people wouldn't suffer if we had a natural disaster like Katrina," he said. "I'm still very, very disappointed with Freddy's remarks on [Amadou] Diallo."
Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion
Former Manhattan Borough President - and former Democratic mayoral candidate Ruth Messinger
Representative Jose Serrano
Representative Nydia Velazquez
"Freddy Ferrer's track record is extraordinary from 66,000 units of affordable housing in the Bronx, to helping create the Civilian Complaint Review Board, to championing a law banning racial profiling, he has delivered real results to New Yorkers throughout his career."
Former Representative - and Democratic vice presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro
State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer
Former State Comptroller Carl McCall
State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver
State Senate Minority Leader David Paterson
State Senator Efrain Gonzalez
State Senator Jeffrey Klein
State Senator Velmanette Montgomery
State Senator Jose Serrano
State Assemblymember Carmen Arroyo
StateAssemblymember Michael Benedetto
State Assemblymember James Brennan
State Assemblymember Luis Diaz
State Assembylmembet Ruben Diaz Jr.
StateAssemblymemberAdriano Espaillat
StateAssemblymember Deborah Glick
"Freddy's dedication to progressive principals is not just a matter of lip-service. His record reflects a consistent commitment of putting his words into action. I remember being quite impressed when, in the mid-1980s as a young, thirty-something Latino Councilmember from the Bronx, Freddy showed great courage and dedication to civil rights for everyone when he cast a crucial vote that moved the Gay Rights Bill out of committee and on to eventual adoption by the full City Council. More recently, I was impressed by Freddy's repeated efforts, along with NARAL, to reach out to the Latino community on the issue of choice."
State Assemblymember Roger Green
StateAssemblymember Carl Heastie
StateAssemblymember Ivan Lafayette
State Assemblymember John Lavelle
State Assemblymember Jimmy Meng
State Assemblymember Cathy Nolan
State Assemblymember Felix Oritz
StateAssemblymember Jose Peralta
State Assemblymember Nick Perry
State Assemblymember Jose Rivera
StateAssemblymember Naomi Rivera
StateAssemblymember Peter Rivera
State Assemblymember Steven Sanders
State Assemblymember Darryl Towns
City Councilmember Hiram Monserrate
City Councilmember Carmen Arroyo
City Councilmember Maria Baez
City Councilmember Bill de Blasio
City Councilmember Letitia James
City Councilmember Miguel Martinez
City Councilmember Annabel Palma
City Councilmember Joel Rivera
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