Comptroller candidate Mark Levine nabbed the endorsement Wednesday of Democratic firebrand — and potential gubernatorial challenger — Rep. Ritchie Torres as the race for the open seat narrows to a two-man primary.
The Bronx congressman, a longtime colleague of Levine’s dating back to their days on the city council, is one of the more prominent lawmakers to back a candidate vying to become the city’s next beancounter.
“I know as comptroller he will aggressively watch New York’s finances and will make sure city agencies deliver on the everyday issues facing New Yorkers in a fiscally responsible manner,” Torres said, adding, “He has my full support.”
Levine called the support a “real honor” and hopes to team up to “take on the cost of living, make New York more affordable and make life easier for New Yorkers.”
Torres has been making headlines almost daily as of late for his repeated attacks on Gov. Kathy Hochul and is rumored to be an early challenger to the governor, whose polling has taken a nose-dive in the fallout of the controversial restarting of congestion pricing.
The endorsement comes just days after State Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-District 38) bailed on the race and shifted her campaign to challenge incumbent Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.
While Levine, the current Manhattan Borough president, is still the front-runner in fundraising with more than $725,000 in donations — bringing his total war chest with matching funds to nearly $2 million — Councilman Justin Brannan is biting at his heels.
Last week, on his official campaign launch for the office, the current council finance chair announced endorsements from 18 current and former city and state lawmakers, including Sen. Andrew Gounardes (D-Brooklyn) and former Congressman Max Rose, along with four councilmembers.
The Brooklyn rocker-turned-lawmaker still lags in fundraising to Levine nearly two-to-one after only pulling in just over $435,000.
Those donations though will give him a bank to rival Levine when his public matching funds roll in next month, according to his campaign which expects about $2 million after the deposit.
