Bob Turner, the Republican running against Assemblyman David Weprin for Anthony Weiner's old seat in 9th Congressional District seat, can now boast the endorsements of two former mayors of the greatest city in the world. Along with his earlier endorsement from Ed Koch, Turner now has the backing of "America's Mayor" (and still maybe 2012 hopeful) Rudy Giuliani. But will this give Turner the bump he needs to beat Weprin come September 13th's special election?
“Congress is in dire need of business leaders like Bob Turner, not another career politician,” Giuliani said in a statement released by Turner’s campaign. “This country needs to start creating jobs again and Bob Turner has the national and international business know-how to help move us in that direction.” Which is exactly what you would expect Rudy to say. Giuliani's endorsement comes days after Turner stepped into the former mayor's pet issue with a 9/11-themed ad attacking Weprin in regards to the so-called "Ground Zero" mosque.
It will be interesting to see how (or if) voters respond to this endorsement. In a Siena Research poll last week Weprin was found to be leading Turner by 48 percent to 42 percent—but considering the large Democratic population in the area that isn't necessarily a good sign for the Assemblyman. The fight for a lame-duck seat could be a very close one.
