Raymond J. McGuire, a former former Citigroup black executive who campaigned heavily for voting Southeast Queens, traveled to Minneapolis last week with Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights activist, to attend the trial of George Floyd’s death to participate.
And on Friday, Ms. Wiley – a black woman already supported by the powerful local 1199 Service Employees International Union – was endorsed by Representative Yvette Clarke, a Brooklyn Democrat and member of the Congressional Black Caucus. Dianne Morales, the most progressive candidate in the race, identifies as an Afro-Latina and has aroused great interest among grassroots left activists.
Mr. Stringer, with his significant war chest and list of prominent endorsements, competes with Ms. Wiley and Ms. Morales for the most progressive voters in town. Left activists, alarmed by the perceived strength of Mr. Yang and Mr. Adams – two other centrist candidates – are planning a strategy to better align a candidate or group of candidates with their vision.
A number of organizations, from the left Working Families Party to the United Federation of Teachers, are in the midst of support processes that could help voters narrow down their preferred candidates. Decisions can be made this week.
There is still time for the race to evolve. Ms. Garcia is deeply respected by some of the people who know City Hall best. Mr. McGuire and Shaun Donovan, a former federal housing secretary, have aired television commercials and Super-PACs are backing them, a dynamic that could improve their competitiveness, though neither is caught on fire.
Mr McGuire, in particular, was seen as a business favorite early on – with the fundraiser to prove it – but there is growing evidence that other candidates might also be acceptable to the city’s donor class.
Mr. Yang courted Mr. McGuire’s donors and encouraged them to take a portfolio management approach by investing in multiple candidates who support the business community, such as someone with direct knowledge of the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity and private Describe discussions. The Yang campaign declined to comment.
