A pair of Bronx legislators are once again backing state Sen. Adriano Espaillat for the 13th Congressional District, which covers Norwood.

But an endorsement from the Bronx Democratic County Committee appears unlikely.

Espaillat, a Democrat, grabbed support from his Democratic colleague, Senator Gustavo Rivera, along with state Assemblyman Victor Pichardo, a Democrat. The endorsement is a familiar move, as both legislators backed Espaillat in both Congressional elections. His first order of business should he win: opening a Congressional office in the Bronx.

“I think the people of the Bronx have been lied to,” said Espaillat, sitting alongside Rivera and Pichardo at New Capital Restaurant in Kingsbridge Heights. “I pledge that on day one people from the Bronx will not have to trek all the way downtown to get their services. They deserve to have something right here, right now. They have not been served well because there hasn’t been a presence here in the neighborhood.”

Espaillat  intends to run on a platform to increase access to well-paying jobs, health care, and increasing affordable housing options.

This is Espaillat’s third run for the 13th Congressional race, a seat long held by Congressman Charles Rangel for more than 40 years. But the third race is a completely altered dynamic than his first and second runs, given Rangel’s decision not to run for office.

Rangel’s imminent retirement has opened the door for a swell of candidates to announce a run for the seat, which mostly covers Harlem and Upper Manhattan. The Bronx side of the district includes Fordham, Kingsbridge, Kingsbridge Heights, and all of Norwood. Candidates vying for the seat include Adam Clayton Powell, Suzan Cook, Mike Gallagher, state Sen. Bill Perkins, Guillermo Lianares, Clyde Williams, and Keith Wright, who recently picked up an endorsement from Rangel. The seat, once Rangel vacates it, will once again be reduced to a junior seat, with much legislative influence from it siphoned off.

Wright may be poised for an endorsement from the Bronx Democratic County Committee, which has remained quiet on the matter. Espaillat, who won the majority of votes in the Bronx, did receive an endorsement from BDCC in 2014. This time, Wright reportedly secured BDCC’s support in January 2015 following his withdrawal from the race for Assembly Speaker, a title now held by Assemblyman Carl Heastie.

Espaillat remained confident that Rivera and Pichardo can help him deliver the votes from the Bronx.

“If you walk the streets of Washington Heights, the streets of the Bronx, you’re basically talking about the same votes, the same issues, the same things that he’s fought for in Washington Heights,” said Rivera of Espaillat.