C. Virginia Fields was elected Borough President of Manhattan in 1997 and is a current Democratic candidate for mayor of New York City in 2005
C. Virginia Fields received her BA from Knoxville College in Tennessee and her Masters in Social Work from Indiana University. In 1971, she moved to New York and became a social worker. During the late 1970s and 1980s she worked in a variety of administrative positions in the social services field, while also becoming involved in community politics.
In 1989, Fields was elected to the New York City Council. In 1997, Fields was elected Manhattan Borough President, replacing Ruth Messinger who ran for Mayor, unsuccessfully, against Rudy Giuliani.
During her tenure as Broough President, Fields emphasized promiting the arts, working with organizations such as the New York Shakespeare Festival and the West Side Arts Coalition. She also was in office during the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
In 2005, Fields announced her candidacy to run for Mayor against incumbent Michael Bloomberg. Other contestants in the Democratic primary included Fernando Ferrer, Gifford Miller, Anthony Weiner, and, potentially, Bob Kerrey. Contestants to succeed Fields as Borough Priesdent were Brian Ellner , Brian Johnston, Carlos Manzano , Adriano Espaillat , Scott Stringer , Eva Moskowitz , Keith Wright, Margarita Lopez , Stanley Michels ,Bill Perkins .
