Mayor Adrian Fenty is hoping an endorsement from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg will resonate with D.C. voters as proof that Fenty is an able administrator for the District.

Bloomberg and Fenty gathered reporters at the recently opened Carmine’s Italian restaurant in Chinatown on Tuesday afternoon to announce the endorsement that Bloomberg said he had “penciled in” years ago when Fenty decided he would seek a second term. It comes exactly four weeks before the Sept. 14 primary, and at a time when at least one poll has indicated Fenty is trailing his chief rival, D.C. Council Chairman Vince Gray, by 8 percentage points.