“This is a totally obvious statement, but being the mayor of the City of New York is a tough job, and people need to make sure they have somebody who’s tough enough to lead, but smart enough to listen and to lead in a collaborative way.”

That’s how City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) responded to the first question asked of her during an interview last Thursday with the Queens Chronicle editorial board: the old standard, “What makes you the best candidate?”

The Queens County Democratic Party on Monday announced its endorsements three three citywide candidates, as well as its pick to be Borough Hall’s next occupant.

The borough’s Dems, led by Rep. Joe Crowley (D-Queens, Bronx), are backing former Councilwoman Melinda Katz for borough president, Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) for mayor, Resham Saujani for public advocate and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer for comptroller.

The race for mayor of New York City took a long-expected turn last night when Anthony Weiner, the former city councilman and congressman from Forest Hills, entered the contest with an announcement posted on YouTube.

Weiner, who quit the House two years ago after sending lewd photos of himself to young women across the country via social media and then lying to the public about doing so for two weeks, said he had made big mistakes in his life but is looking for a second chance.

The Queens County Democratic Party on Monday announced its endorsements for three citywide candidates, as well as its pick to be Borough Hall’s next occupant.

The names of six Democratic state senators and a city councilman from Southeast Queens were among those contained Wednesday on a list of people who had their conversations with then-state Senator Shirley Huntley recorded by an FBI listening device in 2012.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York declined to comment on Wednesday on the names, contained in a sentencing letter connected to Huntley’s case, or U.S. District Court Judge Jack Weinstein’s order to unseal the letter.

City Comptroller John Liu continues to run for mayor as if confident he can overcome the embarrassment of a campaign finance scandal that could send one of his top former aides and a contributor to prison for decades.

How much impact the case will have is an open question. But according to two political science experts in Queens, the Liu campaign faces multiple challenges arising from the convictions last week of Jia “Jenny” Hou, his former treasurer, and Xing Wu “Oliver” Pan, a fundraising “bundler,” who secured donations from other parties that then went to the campaign.

Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone), who was arrested last month on accusations that he took part in a scheme to bribe Republican officials in order to get state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Hollis) onto the mayoral ballot as a Republican, announced Wednesday that he will not run for a second term.

Halloran, who was first elected in 2009, was arrested April 2, along with Smith and Vince Tabone, former vice chairman of the Queens Republican Party, for an alleged plot to solicit bribes to acquire a Wilson Pakula for Smith, a Democrat, in order for him to get a place on the GOP primary ballot for mayor. He was indicted late last month.

Former Rep. Anthony Weiner, the Forest Hills Democrat, may or may not have launched a campaign for mayor this week when he released a plan called “Keys to the City: 64 Ideas to Keep New York the Capital of the Middle Class” — and started a new Twitter account.

Weiner was forced from office a little less than two years ago when it was revealed that he had been sending lewd photos of himself to young women around the country, many via Twitter, and then lied about it for weeks. Until the scandal hit, he was a darling of the Democratic Party for his take-no-prisoners approach to political discourse, advocacy for the needs of his Central and Southwestern Queens district and staunch support of Israel, among other things. He was, for example, a foremost cheerleader of President Obama’s healthcare bill, without which, Weiner said, the economy couldn’t recover from the recession.

Even though a revision to the City Charter in 1990 reduced the borough president position to a largely ceremonial one with a limited advisory role, there are no lack of candidates for the job in Queens.

Four of the six hopefuls came to the Old Mill Yacht Club in Howard Beach last Thursday during a forum hosted by the South Queens Democratic Club, to outline their visions for Queens in the first public forum for beep candidates in South Queens so far.

“We were the first team to ever beat the Celtics, who went 68-14 that year, in a seventh game at the Boston Garden,” former Knicks forward Jerry Lucas recalled last Friday night as the Knicks honored members of their 1972-73 squad, the last New York team to win an NBA championship.

Lucas obviously took a pride in that accomplishment, but he was also sending a message to fans of the current Knicks team that even the Miami Heat, led by Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, a team that recently peeled off 27 straight wins, can be beaten by the never-say-die Knicks in the playoffs.

And now there are three.

Astoria lawyer John Ciafone has entered the race for the District 22 seat held by term-limited Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria).

State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Hollis) and Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) were both arrested in an alleged plot to bribe GOP officials in an attempt to gain support for a potential Republican primary candidacy by Smith for mayor this year.

“The more you’re in politics, the more corrupt you are,” then-Congressional candidate and Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) said during a meeting with the Queens Chronicle’s editorial board last fall. “I don’t care if you’re the best person on the planet. You make deals, the line becomes blurry.”

That was Oct. 19. One day earlier, he allegedly left an unnamed Queens eatery $800 richer in exchange for promising someone a no-show job and other favors, according to a criminal complaint leading to Halloran’s April 2 arrest at his Auburndale home.

Early signs in the Democratic primary for borough president point to a love-fest. Not necessarily among the candidates, but between the six Democrats and Queens itself.

Five of the six candidates vying for the seat attended last Thursday a candidates’ forum at the Hollis Hills Jewish Center, co-hosted by the Saul Weprin and Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic clubs. Each touted experience in at least one niche where government intersects with life, pointing to personal experience and past work as part of his or her bona fides.

A bill to allow mixed martial arts events to be held in New York may finally be headed for approval after years in limbo.

The full contact sport that includes elements of boxing, judo, jiu-jitsu and other martial arts is banned in New York, but is legal in nearly every other state in the country and has a growing fan base. The sport’s top promotion company, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, regularly holds sold-out events in arenas across the country and the world, including in Britain, Canada and Brazil.

Comptroller John Liu announced his candidacy for mayor on Sunday, surprising few after nearly a year of flirting with a run.

The former Flushing councilman formally kicked off his campaign with a populist tone at a rally on the steps of City Hall, an event reportedly so rife with supporters Liu had to hold a second rally in City Hall Park. The event included a stop into Flushing as well.

Candidates vying for Mayor Bloomberg’s job all agree that reducing the police force is not on any of their immediate agendas, but are not all in accord on just how to address controversial safety policies.

Mayoral hopefuls spoke at a policy forum at the First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica on Tuesday night, offering their thoughts on how they would improve housing, crime and safety if elected.

With six months to go before the scheduled Democratic primary, the six Democratic candidates for borough president came to Astoria on March 14 to try and distinguish themselves from the rest of the field on schools, small business and just how to handle Willets Point and development proposals for Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside), Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), former Deputy Borough President Barry Grodenchik, former Councilwoman and Assemblywoman Melinda Katz, state Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) and Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. were all present at various times at the forum hosted by the Greater Astoria Historical Society.

Comptroller John Liu announced his candidacy for mayor on Sunday, surprising few after nearly a year of flirting with a run.

The former Flushing councilman formally kicked off his campaign with a populist tone at a rally on the steps of City Hall, an event reportedly so rife with supporters Liu had to hold a second rally in City Hall Park. The event included a stop into Flushing as well.

Dear Editor:

Remember past City Council Speakers Gifford Miller and Peter Vallone Sr. both lost their respective Democratic mayoral primaries. Just like Miller and Vallone, Speaker Christine Quinn believes she is qualified to become mayor (“Quinn’s quest for Queens’ support,” by Tess McRae, March 14).

Quinn should avoid the appearance of any conflict of interest by resigning the office of City Council speaker today. She should end the charade and be honest enough to run full-time for mayor on her own time and dime.

Hardworking municipal civil servants work full-time. They can’t campaign part-time during the day like Quinn. They would have to either take a leave of absence or quit their day job.

WhileQuinntalks about her concerns over the middle class facing an affordability crisis and attempting to make ends meet, her loyal council members have no problems making ends meet.Never shy around a camera or microphone, Quinn quietly issued checks for 50 percent of each council member’s ann

ual awarded lulus of between $4,000 to $28,000 per year for chairing a committee or subcommittee. These supplement a $112,000 base salary. The base salary plus lulu is three times what an average constituent earns for a job officially classified as part-time. Employeeswould never see such treats from their respective employers.

Voters on Primary Day may tell Quinn no thanks, just like they did Miller and Vallone.

Dear Editor:

Now that the presidential election is in the past, perhaps it is time that we re-examine how we choose our candidates for the highest office in our country. I believe that we should consider changes in our presidential primary system.

The way things are done now, the states that conduct their primaries and caucuses early get the most attention. Often the nominee is chosen by the time we reach the middle of the primary process, if not before. Those states conducting their votes at the end of the “season” often do so in vain, because a candidate nails down enough delegate votes to secure nomination before the primary process across the country is completed. In 2012, Gov. Romney was locked in as the Republican nominee even before the New York primary took place.

Since the selection of presidential candidates is a nationwide matter, I believe that we should have a national presidential primary on one date, probably in the late spring of a presidential year. This way, all votes will be important throughout the country. Since the presidential contest is a fede

ral election, the rules of who should be allowed to vote in such an election should be uniform. Now, in some states, there is an open primary. In other states, like New York, only those enrolled in a particular party are allowed to vote in that party’s primary.

Also, for economic reasons, states should probably hold their other state and local primaries on the same date. In 2012, New York had three primary dates, which cost the taxpayers millions of extra dollars.

Other political parties with a countrywide following should hold their own primary on a national presidential primary day as well as the Republicans and Democrats. Voters should not be limited to choosing between just two candidates from the so-called major parties.

After the primary and convention process is over, and a candidate and his or her running mate is selected, we usually have a series of debates before the November election. However, those debates are almost always limited to the Democratic and Republican nominees. All candidates who are able to get on the ballot in a majority of states should take part in those debates. In 2012, Green Party candidate Jill Stein was not allowed to participate in the presidential debates despite the fact that she was on the ballot in most states.

It would seem to me, as we move forward in the 21st century, that there should be reforms undertaken so that the American electorate has many choices of candidates to select from to hold the most important office in our country. We should also be making the voting process easier and more efficient to accommodate the electorate in selecting our political leaders.

Along 71st Avenue, in front of the HSBC Forest Hills branch, a gaggle of people gathered to hear City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) announce her candidacy for mayor on Sunday.

The group, mostly consisting of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association and campaign volunteers, held signs reading “Quinn for Mayor” and intermittently cheered “Quinn to win,” as they waited for the speaker to arrive.