By Heather Grossmann
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — It was one small step for Harold Ford Jr., one giant leap towards his candidacy on Tuesday when Ford took temporary leave of his Wall Street job to investigate a U.S. Senate bid.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's potential primary challenger will focus on "listening to New Yorkers and discussing his goals as an independent Democrat" during the 30-day leave from his job as vice chairman of Merril Lynch, Ford's spokesman told the Associated Press.
The former Tennessee congressman served as a senior policy advisor at the bank, instructing the senior management on domestic policy issues and working on business development initiatives.
Ford kicked off his leave by having lunch with Public Advocate Bill de Blasio in Manhattan, one of several local politicians he's met with over the past couple of weeks.
Last Friday Ford shared a meal with Assemblyman and Manhattan Democratic Chairman Keith Wright and he spent Martin Luther King Day with the Rev. Al Sharpton and other elected officials.
He is expected to travel to Long Island and upstate in the coming days to meet with other political leaders.
De Blasio's spokesman Matthew Wing said that the public advocate had also met with Gillibrand recently and would be making an endorsement "at a later time."
