John White Jr.'s surprise endorsement of Republican Sam Katz may be the biggest event so far in the race to succeed Mayor Rendell, but there are other key players still undecided. Here's a look:

Happy Fernandez: Like White, Fernandez - who finished fourth in the Democratic primary with about 6 percent of the vote as Philadelphia's first major woman candidate for mayor - has been wooed by both Katz and Democrat John Street.

"I've been talking with people and seeing what would be the best thing for the city," said Fernandez, who said her new post as president of Moore College of Art and Design would not preclude her from making a personal endorsement.

The Fraternal Order of Police: In a decision that received no attention when it was made several weeks ago, the influential 10,000-member police union decided it will endorse neither Street nor Katz, although it does plan endorsements in City Council races.

Rich Costello, the FOP president, said the decision emerged unexpectedly at a meeting of shop stewards where there was overwhelming sentiment to remain neutral - because neither candidate supported a boost in pension payments last winter.

He said FOP members learned their lesson in 1991 when it endorsed Rendell because he was clearly going to win - and were rewarded with a contract unpopular with the rank-and-file.

Philadelphia Federation of Teachers: Like the FOP, teachers' union leaders aren't making a recommendation between Street and Katz. But unlike the cops, the PFT is asking its members to cast ballots at work later this month, and will endorse whoever wins.

Insiders privately say that should aid Street, since teachers tend to be overwhelmingly Democratic.

State Sen. Vince Fumo: The very influential Democratic Party insider was one of Marty Weinberg's top backers in the spring, but he has yet to declare if he'll support Street or take some other route. Aides said there's no timetable for a decision.

City Councilman Michael Nutter: It was a coup for White when the Council rep from westernmost Philadelphia endorsed him last spring, a move that strained Nutter's relations with Street, a former ally on many matters before City Council.

Like White, he said this week it's been hard for him to hold a serious discussion with Street about substantive issues, and until he does so it will be hard for to talk more seriously about endorsing his fellow Democrat. It clearly didn't help when some Street aides were quoted privately calling Nutter "Dead Man Walking."

"When you're on death row, it gives you a totally different outlook on your environment," he joked.

District Attorney Lynne Abraham: The city's highest ranking elected official after Rendell, she has yet to say whether she'll endorse fellow Democrat Street. "She is an elected Democratic official," noted political adviser Eleanor Dezzi.

City Councilwoman Marian Tasco: Like Nutter, she chose White over Street last May, and now like Nutter, she is exploring whether she and Street can find common ground.

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