Anthony Weiner mulls a City Council run in lower Manhattan

Former Rep. Anthony Weiner is thinking about mounting another political comeback attempt – this time in the New York City Council. 

Speaking during his weekly radio show on 77WABC Saturday afternoon, Weiner said he’s considering entering the race for term-limited Council Member Carlina Rivera’s seat in lower Manhattan. While he said he’s yet to make up his mind, it’s a decision he’s strongly considering  – particularly in wake of the presidential election. 

“I’m thinking about it. I’m wrestling with it,” Weiner said, pointing to what he described as a myriad of quality of life issues in his district and the city at large. “I love doing this job on the radio, but I want to be of service.”

The Council District 2 Democratic primary race is already competitive. It includes Assembly Member Harvey Epstein (recently parodied on Saturday Night Live for his name), Manhattan Community Board 3 Chair Andrea Gordillo and Community Board 3 Vice Chair and nonprofit leader Sarah Batchu. Fundraising is also well underway – all three candidates have already raised more than $50,000 for their campaigns. Batchu currently leads with roughly $60,000 raised. 

Even by New York standards, Weiner’s career has seen a remarkable amount of scandal. He’s been out of office since 2011, when he resigned amid a sexting scandal that involved several women including a minor. He attempted a comeback run for mayor in 2013 which was derailed by yet another sexting scandal. In 2017, he was sentenced to 21 months in prison for sexting a minor. A federal search of Weiner’s laptop in connection to the sexting investigation unearthed emails that furthered a federal probe into then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton via Weiner’s ex-wife and Clinton aide Huma Abedin. 

Weiner acknowledged that all together, while there’s a number of reasons not to run, he feels Democrats are not doing a good enough job tackling problems like crime, homelessness, and the housing shortage.  

“The things in my past, the things about my addiction, the things about my acting out, the things about my background – it’s a lot, it’s a lot,” he said. “But we’re at a moment that we Democrats, we seem like we come into knife fights carrying library books all the time.”

A mentee of Chuck Schumer, Weiner served in the New York City Council from 1992 to 1998 before succeeding Schumer in Congress. As of early October, he hadn’t opened a campaign account for the seat.

“Anyone who wants to run should run for sure,” Epstein said when asked about Weiner’s interest. “That is the Democratic process.”

Gordillo and Batchu were less open to the idea. 

“Families in Lower Manhattan deserve better than failed New York and Washington politicians using our moment of need for their own political comeback,” Gordillo said in a statement. “With the threats of the next Trump presidency here, we need fierce, progressive leadership to stand up for our values and protect our community.” On X, Batchu said, “Trump wins, and now every creepy, washed-up politician thinks they can make a comeback. My constituents deserve better than to serve as the audience for a disgraced politician’s redemption tour.”