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At a recent panel discussion with the four leading Democratic mayoral candidates, moderator and Partnership for New York City CEO Kathryn Wylde spoke of the “consternation” in the business community about the post-Bloomberg era.
So how does she feel now that a potentially legitimate Republican contender in MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota has emerged?
Don’t expect the business community to jump blindly behind Mr. Lhota if he does decide to run, she said.
“In a city that is 7-to-1 Democratic, at a minimum, the business community will be hedging its bets,” Ms. Wylde said. “It is still likely that the person who comes out of the Democratic primary will be the mayor. But to the extent that the general election is more competitive, it will help the business community have its voice heard.”
By Ms. Wylde’s reasoning, even if Mr. Lhota faces long odds in a general election, having a viable Republican threat will force the Democratic mayoral candidates to pay some heed to the business community during primary race. That could help Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the mayoral frontrunner, who has built ties with the business community and as an ally of Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
“I don’t think it disadvantages Christine Quinn,” Ms. Wylde said of Mr. Lhota’s candidacy. “Quite to the contrary, it makes the other candidates pay more attention and have a little bit broader appeal.”
Ms. Wylde also singled out ex-Comptroller Bill Thompson as someone with good relations with the business community who could be helped by Mr. Lhota’s entry. Notably, she did not mention Public Advocate Bill de Blasio or city Comptroller John Liu. Mr. de Blasio in particular has been tacking to Ms. Quinn’s left recently on a number of issues. Labor unions, meanwhile, are hoping to use the mayoral race to squeeze Ms. Quinn on several major issues in upcoming months.
One left-leaning insider argued that Mr. Lhota’s entry would hurt Ms. Quinn in the Democratic primary, as she will be forced pay attention to retaining support from Mr. Bloomberg’s allies in the business community during the primary and possible run-off.
“The pro-Bloomberg, business Democratic elite really had no options but to vote for Quinn,” the insider said. “Now there’s a real competition [for their votes].”
