In a move that could add more weight to Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren’s campaign, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino officially endorsed Warren Friday at a rally in Roslindale’s Adams Park.
“Today, I am here again to stand on the side of families, small business owners and the middle class,” Menino told the crowd.
He pledged his support for Warren, describing her as “good people.”
More than 300 people filled the park to see the announcement, which was leaked to the press on Thursday morning.
Warren told The Daily Free Press that it felt “wonderful” to get Menino’s endorsement.
“When there’s a crisis, Mayor Menino is there,” she said. “When there’s a cause for celebration, Mayor Menino is there. Here’s the big one: when there’s a fight we just have to win, Mayor Menino is there … so I am proud to have the toughest fighter Boston has ever seen standing in my corner.”
For months, the Boston mayor had not made clear whom he would choose to endorse in the state’s Senate race.
Menino told the crowd that the decision required a lot of thought, but that he chose Warren for her support of the average American.
“I thought to myself, if I was a guy from Hyde Park, Elizabeth Warren have my back,” he said. “Let me tell you folks, I have her back right now.”
After news of the endorsement spread, the Brown campaign said they felt no ill will toward Menino.
“Senator Brown has nothing but respect for Mayor Menino, and when he endorses Elizabeth Warren it won’t affect his ability to work with Mayor Menino,” said Brown for America spokesman Colin Reed.
Brown has also received the backings of the former mayors of four of Massachusetts’ largest cities, Reed said.
Menino acknowledged that his decision had long been participated, joking with the crowd that he and his wife had received a few phone calls at their home about it.
The timing was strategic, he told The Free Press.
“There’s a time and place for everything in a campaign,” Menino said. “It’s all about timing, how to move the agenda forward. If I had done this six months ago, no one would have paid attention.”
After receiving the mayor’s support, Warren pledged to support small business and jobs, again calling out Brown for voting against three jobs bills in 2011.
“A quarter of a million people unemployed in the Commonwealth last year, and Scott Brown voted against three jobs bills,” she said. “I will go to Washington to work for jobs.”
Addressing the crowd of Roslindale small business owners, Warren called out Brown for voting against tax cuts for 97 percent of small businesses.
“Scott Brown does not always vote the wrong way, but too often, when we get down to it, Scott Brown isn’t with you,” she said.
Mayor Menino’s endorsement capped off a week of highs for Warren, who moved ahead in multiple polls, leading by between 5 and 6 points.
Although recent polls showed Warren ahead of Brown, a Boston Herald/UMass Lowell poll released Wednesday showed Brown with a 6-point lead.
“The polls are going to go up, they’re going to go down,” Reed said. “Point is, it’s going to be a very close race, but ultimately the people of this state will face a clear choice between two candidates with two very different visions.”
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