NEW YORK CITY — In the ongoing battle to attract Latino voters this election cycle, Council Speaker Christine Quinn scored a high-profiled endorsement from the former Governor of Puerto Rico, Sila María Calderón on Monday.
Calderón served as governor of the island commonwealth from 2001 to 2005, and remains the only woman to have held the job. She had previously been the mayor of the capital city of San Juan.
“I’m so very proud to stand with such a powerful and proven leader and look forward to working together once I’m mayor to continue to help bring more New Yorkers into the middle class and continue to move the city forward,” Quinn said in a statement.
In her endorsement, Calderón pointed to the speaker’s experience as key for the city moving forward.
“The next mayor needs to be someone who has a record of delivering results for the city, a vision that will continue to bring the city forward, and the will and the guts to fight for New Yorkers and make that vision a reality,” she said in a statement.
The city’s Latino vote is seemingly up for grabs in this year’s mayoral contest.
A number of the candidates vying for the Democratic primary have secured key figures in the hope of swaying Latino votes in September. For example, former city Comptroller Bill Thompson was endorsed by State Sen. Adriano Espaillat and Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr, while Public Advocate Bill de Blasio has captured key local Latino lawmakers in Manhattan and the Bronx.
According to the US Census, Latinos and Hispanics make up more than 28 percent of the city’s population.
Former Bronx borough president Aldofo Carrión is currently the only Latino candidate running for mayor. He’s running as an independent.
