Comptroller Liu only pol to exploit parade

You’d have thought City Comptroller John Liu had just scored the winning touchdown.

Fists pumping in the air and decked out in a blue New York Giants sweatshirt, Liu barnstormed up the Canyon of Heroes yesterday as if he were a key player in the Giants’ Super Bowl win.

And when it came to parading politicians, Liu had the field to himself.

Mayor Bloomberg invited 10 elected officials to ride in the parade, but only Liu took him up.

An aide later explained that Liu was simply getting into the spirit of the day with his exuberant behavior.

“The comptroller is a Giants fan. So much so that he joined with hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers in losing his voice cheering on Big Blue at the parade today,” said the aide.

Rob Kim/FilmMagic

12TH MAN: John Liu celebrates as if he’s just scored a TD at yesterday’s parade. He was the only pol to accept the mayor’s invitation to ride along.

Liu is also a candidate for mayor in 2013, despite a federal investigation into his campaign finances.

So it certainly couldn’t hurt that he appeared in Giants regalia before hundreds of thousands of fans, presumably many registered to vote in New York City.

Or could it?

“People don’t go to a Giants parade to see politicians,” said one legislator, who didn’t seem to mind being left off Bloomberg’s selective invite list for the parade. “They go to see the football players.”

That could explain why two of Liu’s likely mayoral rivals — Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn — declined Bloomberg’s invitation to join the parade and took part only in the festivities afterward at City Hall.

Both said they begged off because of scheduling issues.

The US senators from New York and New Jersey — Charles Schumer, Kirsten Gillibrand, Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez — missed their chances to rub shoulders with the players and their fans, citing business in DC.

Likewise, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver told mayoral aides he had to be in Albany.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who had his own Super Bowl celebration planned, declined the mayor’s offer to cross the river.

Gov. Cuomo made a rare public appearance at Bloomberg’s side, both sharing the float with Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning.

Cuomo’s stay was limited. He didn’t hang around for the key-to-the-city ceremony hosted by the mayor at City Hall.

About 5,000 tickets were distributed to the event, with 500 allocated to the City Council and its 51 members.

Although the public was invited to join a lottery for tickets, plenty of folks with the right connections found themselves seated just feet away from the center section reserved for players’ families.

“I’m a huge Giants fan,” explained one lobbyist who got in thanks to his political ties.

david.seifman@nypost.com