Pedro Rodriguez, the former deputy mayor with the Joey Torres Administration who came in third in the 2018 mayoral contest, in the closing days of the campaign issued a statement in support of Alex Mendez for Mayor of Paterson.

“Solo un candidato puede derrotar al corrupto de André Sayegh en Paterson,” Rodriguez wrote on Facebook. “Only one candidate can defeat Andre Sayegh and his currupt system Alex Mendez Vote for a Change on Tuesday.”

In his respectable campaign for mayor four years ago, Rodriguez appeared to split the city’s Latino vote with Mendez, enabling Sayegh to win.

His absence from the field this year has prompted some nail biting and hand-wringing among Sayegh allies, as the mayor attempts to fend off Mendez.

His rhetoric in the endorsement, too, bears scrutiny, as Mendez has tried to evade his own active indictment by persistently – without proof – calling Sayegh “corrupt.”

Rodriguez issued his endorsement at the ocean in fair weather – not against the backdrop of the Paterson Great Falls or in local environs.