Eric Gray received his third endorsement from a sitting city council member this week, the latest coming from Sixth District Councilman Dee Andrews. Photo by Eric Gray campaign website.
For the second time this week Sixth District Councilman Dee Andrews has inserted himself into the race for the open Second District seat via endorsement, this time endorsing candidate Eric Gray for the position that will be decided in the June 7 runoff election.
The announcement from the Gray campaign comes just two days after Jeannine Pearce, the candidate opposing Gray in the runoff, announced she had received an endorsement from Andrews.
“Eric Gray is a great advocate for small business owners and he has an eye for economic development for our city,” Andrews said in a statement. “I know his vision will enhance the Second District.”
With the endorsement, Gray adds to his list of supporters who currently serve on the council, as he’d previously been endorsed by councilwomen Suzie Price and Lena Gonzalez. Pearce, who Andrews endorsed earlier this week, has now received the backing of four members on the council, including the person currently serving the Second District, Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal.
In that announcement Andrews praised Pearce for her distinction of being the “only candidate” with a track record of bringing diverse groups of people together, adding that Pearce would be a council member that the entire city could be proud of.
Christian Kropff, a member of Pearce’s staff, said that when they prepared the release sent out by her campaign this week, they were not aware that Andrews would also be endorsing Gray.
He said it was not until Tuesday that Andrew’s Chief of Staff John Edmund told the Pearce campaign that the councilman would be backing both in the upcoming run-off. Kropff said that Andrews backed Peace for her work with the youth and veterans and is backing Gray for his small business platform.
“There’s generally one or two people who will do dual endorsements,” Kropff said. “In this case he endorsed one candidate for one issue and the other for a different issue.”