Rock Star, Defiant Representitve or a Cult Leader? Liu Shakes Up Mayoral Campaign

John Liu officially entered the crowded field of mayoral candidates with a 15 hour kick off tour Sunday, tailed by family members, supporters and tired NYC reporters.

Some viewed the chaotic scene and over flowed crowd of supports at the steps of City Hall as a treatment of a rock star:

Some viewed the tiring tour in all boroughs, the large crowds, chants and outburst of support as a footprint of a campaign soldier that is defiant to prove New Yorkers he's one of them, not of the known elites in City Hall. 

“We’re going full steam ahead in this campaign. We’ve got a lot of support all across the city,” Liu told reporters, according to Politicker. “People have said there’s a witch hunt, the problem is there’s no witch. So, we’re going full steam ahead. We’re going to win this election.”

And some suggested he's nothing more than a cult leader of a growing population. “He’s been running for mayor ever since he became city comptroller,” political consultant Brad Gerstman told PIX 11. “He’s been running around town, kissing babies and he has a cult like following.”

The Associated Press described him as a leader who is being looked up for influence on their own behalf. "Many Asian-Americans here have looked to him as a standard-bearer for increasing their community's political visibility and influence. While New York counts 1.5 million Asian residents and the largest Chinese population outside Asia, they hadn't enjoyed the success in electoral politics of some Asian communities on the West Coast."