OREANDA-NEWS. New York mayoral candidate Vitaly Filipchenko, born in Tomsk, said he considers his Russian accent to be an electoral advantage.

Filipchenko came to the United States more than 10 years ago. He has his own shipping company. The Russian, who also has US citizenship, runs as an independent candidate. The primary elections are scheduled for June 22, the general elections will be held on November 2. Now the post of mayor of the city is held by the Democrat Bill De Blasio.

"I still have a Russian accent. When people hear my speech, they understand where I am from. I am not ashamed of this. I am going to the mayor of New York with my accent, and for me this is not a limitation. I consider it, on the contrary, a plus," - Filipchenko said in an interview with RIA Novosti.

He explained that hearing his accent makes people respectful. "People see: he has an accent, and he is still trying to change something, he is cooler than the others, because he is not afraid, does not hesitate. If during a debate someone misunderstands something from my words, I am not ashamed, I just I repeat it for the second time, "the candidate added.

Filipchenko also told why he wants to run for mayor of New York: “I go to the mayor's office and I'm not trying to make a profit from it. Many go to the mayor's office just to advertise for themselves, to make money. I'm a different person. I do, let's say, like Robin Hood. That is, I want to help people. "

He said he was counting on emigrants. Not only Russians - "all emigrants who have gone through a hard working path."

The Russian noted that 50% of New York is immigrants. He said: “When they see in me their parents, grandmothers, grandfathers who came, sought, worked from morning till night, tried to save money, tried to provide for the family, tried to put the children on their feet, they understand: this guy knows our problems, he's really our guy. They all see themselves in me. "