Jorge Elorza to endorse David Morales for Providence mayor

Incumbent Mayor Brett Smiley served as one of Elorza’s top aides during his first term. This will be the second time Elorza has endorsed a candidate over his former ally.

By Dan McGowan | The Boston Globe

State Representative David Morales is poised to pick up his most significant individual endorsement later today in his campaign to become Providence’s next mayor.

Former mayor Jorge Elorza is expected to endorse Morales, siding with the 27-year-old Democrat over incumbent Mayor Brett Smiley, according to a spokesman for Morales’s campaign.

The move is notable because Smiley served as one of Elorza’s top aides during his first term, and because Smiley’s decision to drop out of the 2014 mayoral race and endorse Elorza was crucial to Elorza’s victory.

But that was then. This is now.