On the campaign trail yesterday, Richard M. Aborn, at top right, chats with potential voters in Chelsea with Assemblyman Richard Gottfried at his side, while Leslie Crocker Snyder, center, visits a senior center in Kips Bay, and Cyrus R. Vance Jr., bottom at right, campaigns on the steps of Manhattan Supreme Court with, from right, District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum.
The three candidates in a hard-fought campaign to succeed Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau, who is retiring at the end of the year, used every opportunity in the final days before today's primary to garner endorsements, woo voters and reiterate the priorities they would bring to the office.
The candidates, Richard M. Aborn, a managing partner at Constantine Cannon; Leslie Crocker Snyder, a partner at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman; and Cyrus R. Vance Jr., a principal at Morvillo, Abramowitz, Grand, Iason, Anello & Bohrer, all worked for Mr. Morgenthau at one time.
While all have pledged to be tough on crime and to keep the city safe, they have also put forth initiatives to prevent crimes, including closer ties to the community, alternatives to incarceration, procedures to reduce wrongful convictions and increased use of specialized courts.
Voters also are faced with the question of which candidate has the temperament and experience to set policy and oversee a $78.7 million budget that pays for 454 attorneys and 755 staff.
Like his opponents, Mr. Aborn spent yesterday on the streets. Among his stops was a visit to Chelsea with Assemblyman Richard Gottfried and an appearance to meet voters and shake hands at a subway stop in Harlem.
Today, Mr. Aborn will cross town campaigning "right up until the polls close," said Alexis Grenell, a campaign spokeswoman.
"We are not taking any vote for granted," she said.
On Friday, Mr. Aborn, 57, landed the endorsement of Michael Steinberg, a postal worker attacked with a chainsaw in 2006.
Joined by New York City Police Commissioner William J. Bratton, the noted gun control advocate told supporters Friday, "I'm running because there's a broad problem with the criminal justice system when one out of every three African American men spend some portion of their lives behind bars, when four out of five kids cycle through the broken juvenile justice system, and illegal guns continue to plague our communities."
Ms. Snyder, 67, a former acting Supreme Court justice, yesterday greeted potential voters on the Upper East Side and in Washington Heights and visited several senior centers.
Over the weekend, she won the endorsement of the National Organization for Women. The only woman in the race, Ms. Snyder already has the backing of former Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger, former vice presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro and former Family Court Judge Karen Burstein. During the 1970s, Ms. Snyder, 67, co-wrote the New York State rape shield laws, when she led the sex crimes unit at the district attorney's office.
Throughout the campaign, Ms. Snyder has stressed that after 35 years protecting New Yorkers as a prosecutor, judge and public servant, she is the most qualified candidate to succeed Mr. Morgenthau.
Ms. Snyder's campaign said she expects to spend today greeting voters on the Upper East Side, at Stuyvesant Town and in Washington Heights.
Mr. Vance spent much of yesterday campaigning with the man he hopes to succeed, Mr. Morgenthau, 90, who has called Mr. Vance "by far the best qualified candidate" in the race. Mr. Vance also has won the endorsements of The New York Times, Daily News and Post.
During a weekend of campaigning that included appearances with well-known supporters such as Gloria Steinem and Oscar de la Renta, a number of prominent attorneys who support Mr. Vance sent a letter to Ms. Snyder, faulting her for the "nature and substance" of her "misguided attacks" on Mr. Vance.
In fliers and a recent TV ad, Ms. Snyder has accused Mr. Vance 55, of fleeing to Seattle during the crack epidemic of the 1980s to "make millions defending criminals."
Signed by attorneys including Zachary Carter, a Dorsey & Whitney partner and former U.S. attorney; best-selling author Linda Fairstein, who led the sex crimes unit at the district attorney's office; defense lawyer Gerald Lefcourt, and Michael A. Armstrong, who had been a Snyder supporter, the letter said, "If you truly believe that Cy's service to defendants in the criminal justice system is something to be attacked, you have forgotten a core principle of our legal system — the right of the accused to competent counsel and a vigorous defense."
During a televised debate Sunday, after Mr. Vance said the attacks had demeaned defense attorneys and the district attorney's office, Ms. Snyder countered, "I don't believe I've said anything negative. What I've done is point to the facts and the comparisons between myself and the other candidates."
@|Noeleen.Walder@incisivemedia.com
