NYC Council Speaker Quinn to endorse liberal de Blasio for mayor: source

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn on Tuesday plans to endorse Bill de Blasio, her former rival for the Democratic mayoral nomination, according to a person familiar with her plans. The source said Quinn planned to make her endorsement on the steps of New York City Hall at midday, a week after de Blasio was the leading vote-getter in the party primary. The de Blasio campaign on Tuesday morning issued a statement saying the endorsement was scheduled. Quinn campaign officials declined to comment ahead of the announcement. The move comes a day after former City Comptroller Bill Thompson, who placed a distant second to liberal de Blasio in last week's primary, bowed out of the race, eliminating the need for what may have been a bruising runoff election. De Blasio, the city's public advocate, will face Republican Joe Lhota in the November election to succeed Michael Bloomberg, who has run the city for 12 years. Lhota had been a top lieutenant of Bloomberg's predecessor, Republican Rudolph Giuliani. (Reporting by Edith Honan; Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)