Will Catsimatidis's Fortune Dignify His Candidacy?

Republican mayoral candidate has not yet hired a pollster, although its in the makings according to his campaign manager, but he was fast enough to dismiss the latest poll showing him with a mere 5% of support among NYC Republican voters. 

“I love when they underestimate me,” he told The Daily News. “People have been underestimating me from a little Greek island to 135th St to top of American industry.” 

Catsimatidis is dismissive of most of the Republicans running, saying Lhota is his “only” real rival. “I am a visionary. I create jobs, I create new stuff,” he said. Drawing a distinction with Lhota, who was deputy mayor under Rudy Giuliani, he added, “I’ve never been a number two.”

“We’re running two campaigns,” Catsimatidis continued. “We’re running a campaign to win GOP nomination if Lhota doesn’t drop out and we’re running one for November.”

Yet many in the political community still believe his candidacy is nothing more than a vanity project by a man who has more money than he can spend, writes Jonathan Lemire. “You look at him and it’s hard to take him seriously,” said a senior staffer on another GOP campaign. “But all that money...well, that’s real.”