Former New York Rep. Anthony Weiner, whose career appeared to famously flame out in 2011 when he resigned from Congress because of an extramarital sexting scandal and his lies about what he'd done, has now officially jumped back into politics.
In a new video, the Democrat confirmed Wednesday that he's getting into this year's race to succeed New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I).
"Look, I've made some big mistakes and I know I let a lot of people down," Weiner says in the video. "But I've also learned some tough lessons."
"I hope I get a second chance to work for you," he adds.
His wife, former Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin, says to New Yorkers that "we love this city and no one will work harder to make it better than Anthony."
The video opens with Weiner, Abedin and their infant son in what appears to be the kitchen of their home.
Speculation about Weiner's comeback plan heated up in April, as we reported, when a profile in The New York Times Magazine made it clear that the former congressman was "eyeing the mayor's race."
As The Associated Press reports, the 48-year-old Weiner "is jumping into a crowded field for September's primary." But he's also "arriving with some significant advantages, including a $4.8 million campaign war chest, the possibility of more than $1 million more in public matching money, polls showing him ahead of all but one other Democrat — and no end of name recognition."
According to Politico, "a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday morning found City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the longtime front-runner, drawing 25 percent of the vote to Weiner's 15 percent in the multi-candidate Democratic primary. Twenty-seven percent of Democratic primary voters were undecided. Nearly half the city's voters said Weiner shouldn't run for mayor, including 52 percent of women and 44 percent of Democrats."
The contenders for the Republican nomination, the AP writes, "include billionaire businessman John Catsimatidis, former Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Joseph Lhota and homelessness-aid organization head George McDonald."
The primary is set for Sept. 10.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.