POLITICAL ARENA

Final endorsements wave comes through

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If Kathryn Garcia was able to vote in the Bronx, she says she would choose Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez as her first choice on the ballot to become borough president.

Fernandez has returned the favor, saying she would indeed support Garcia in her run as mayor — but only has her second choice. That’s because she’s already backed Maya Wiley as her top pick.

Still, in a ranked-choice voting system, No. 2 isn’t bad, and Garcia says she’ll take it.

“Nathalia and I share the same commitment to tackling one of New York City’s biggest threats: climate change,” Garcia said, in a release. “Nathalia is the only candidate with a detailed plan on how to address the issue head-on.”

The kind words were mutual from Fernandez.

“The Bronx is in crisis, and needs a leader who will make the borough a priority in New York City’s recovery from the pandemic,” the Assemblywoman said, in a release. “Throughout her career, Kathryn has proven she knows how to diagnose and solve a crisis, ensuring that New York’s most vulnerable citizens have a seat at the table.”

But the parade of endorsements didn’t stop there. Mino Lora’s city council campaign already was backed by U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, but she now has another member of the Squad behind her: U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. At least her political action committee,  Courage to Change.

Lora didn’t release a public statement talking about the endorsement, but one of her challengers in the June 22 primary did.

“In order to receive U.S. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement, city council candidates were asked to support a cut of at least $3 billion to the New York Police Department each year, which would slash the agency’s budget in half,” social worker Abigail Martin said, in a statement. “The candidate in this race who did receive AOC’s endorsement has, on multiple occasions, said the NYPD should be abolished.”

New York City’s Fire Officers Association has backed Yadhira Gonzalez-Taylor for judge on the borough’s municipal court.

Gonzalez-Taylor also received the backing of the Uniform Firefighters Association, which represents 11,000 uniformed firefighters, as well as the Riverdale civic group Concerned Citizens for Change.

And Sammy Ravelo’s campaign for Bronx borough president got a boost from the Police Benevolent Association, the primary union representing NYPD officers — and the same group that endorsed Donald Trump for re-election in 2020.

“While other politicians demonize the police, I have stood by and supported them throughout my campaign, and through my life,” said Ravelo — who helped organize last year’s Blue Lives Matter march down Broadway — in a release.

CLARIFICATION: Mino Lora received an endorsement from Courage to Change, a political action committee led by U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. A Political Arena brief in the June 17 issue was not clear on the congresswoman's involvement in the endorsement.

Kathryn Garcia, Nathalia Fernandez, Maya Wiley, Michael Hinman, Mino Lora, Jamaal Bowman, Alexandira Ocasio-Cortez, Abigail Martin, New York Police Department, NYPD, Yadhira Gonzalez-Taylor, Fire Officers Association, Uniform Firefighters Association, Concerned Citizens for Change, Sammy Ravelo, Police Benevolent Association, Donald Trump,

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