Rizzo ready to return to Philly public office — as mayor or Democratic councilman
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Former City Councilman Frank Rizzo Jr. has said he's considering a run for mayor. How would his candidacy change the race? (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
A former Republican City Councilman in Philadelphia who lost re-election in 2011 after taking an unpopular retirement payment is eyeing a comeback.
Frank Rizzo Jr. said he is thinking about running for mayor next year, but he’s waiting for the field to take shape to make a decision. If he doesn’t go for the city’s top job, the son of a legendary mayor said he’s got a “plan B”: Run for City Council again, this time as a Democrat.
“I still feel a desire, a commitment to want to help the city of Philadelphia that I love so much,” said Rizzo Jr. “If I don’t run for mayor, you can bet I’m going to run for City Council.”
Political insiders blamed Rizzo Jr.’s defeat in 2011 on his enrolling in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan, commonly known as DROP, and losing the support of the city’s GOP.
“If I had to think about it over again, maybe I would have made a different decision,” he said of taking the DROP payment. “But based on the lawyers, based on all of the information that I had … it was appropriate.”
Only two candidates have officially entered the mayoral race: former city solicitor Ken Trujillo and past Redevelopment Authority director Terry Gillen. State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams and former District Attorney Lynne Abraham plan to announce this week.
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