The three Democratic candidates for Manhattan district attorney squared off at a heated debate Tuesday morning that was co-moderated by NY1 political anchor Dominic Carter.

The death penalty has become one of the most divisive issues on the campaign trail.

Leslie Crocker Snyder, who ran against outgoing District Attorney Robert Morgenthau in 2005, once told a defendant she would be willing to give him the lethal injection herself. She said today that she never should have spoken those words and she promised to fight any effort to bring the death penalty to New York.

“I have evolved,” said Crocker Snyder. “I have changed my position and I don’t think that’s anything to be ashamed about. I would hope that people, at least people who are not politicians, and I am not a politician, can learn and can evolve.”

The other two candidates in the race, Richard Aborn and Cyrus Vance Jr., both say they have always opposed the death penalty.

Vance Jr. has the support of the outgoing district attorney, but some observers say he has had trouble getting his campaign off the ground, a notion he disputed in today’s debate.

“We are in great shape. We are three months away from the primary and we have done a phenomenal job of fundraising,” he said. “I’m not a politician. I’ve never run for office before and my work has not been in the political arena.”

Aborn was widely considered to be the dark horse candidate in the race, but many political observers have taken notice of the endorsements he gas racked up from elected officials, Democratic clubs, and others.

“I think there is an enormous opportunity to build on the legacy of Bob Morgenthau,” Aborn said. “He has established a very solid foundation in that office of good trial lawyers, a good sense of integrity, a good sense of profession – a foundation upon which anyone who gets this office should be proud to build upon.”

Watch the “Road to City Hall” tonight at 7 and 10 p.m. for more on today’s debate.

Source: NY1