She once studied to become an Episcopal priest — and could now be her husband’s best secret weapon in his mayoral contest against Bill de Blasio.
Tamra Roberts Lhota has largely been able to avoid the spotlight since her husband declared his candidacy. But she’s about to step up her presence on the campaign trail — and was already hard at work behind the scenes last week, when she met with the Rev. Al Sharpton along with her husband, Republican hopeful Joe Lhota. “We talked about the Lord,” a clearly impressed Sharpton said of Tamra.
Joe Lhota’s intensely private family — including Tamra and daughter Kathryn, 22 — couldn’t be further from that of de Blasio’s, the charismatic biracial clan that has been a focal point of the Dem’s campaign.
“I’m always happy to meet people, but I’m not a public person, per se,” noted Tamra, 52.
For a long time, Tamra worked in the background as a fund-raiser for former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, for whom her husband once worked as a deputy mayor. Then, in 2004, she started toying with the idea of becoming an ordained minister and enrolled in Manhattan’s General Theological Seminary.
“My faith has always been important to me,” she told The Post. “I wanted to be of service to others.”
Tamra grew up in Napa, Calif., back when it was more farmland than upscale vineyards. And despite living in the city for more than 25 years, she still has a rural gentleness about her.
Her parents were teenagers when she was born, and her grandparents, who owned a candy-packaging business, played a big role in her life. So did church.
“I grew up in an Assemblies of God church, which is a whole other story,” she said of the religious-revival denomination whose members have been known to speak in tongues.
Unlike her gruff, Bronx-born, sarcastic husband, Tamra has a soft voice and natural empathy. She finds it torturous to talk about herself, almost as if she is embarrassed by doing so. But ask her about the charitable work she’d like to do as the city’s first lady, and her eyes light up with possibility.
She also still dreams of becoming a minister. Tamra said she decided that the timing wasn’t right for her bid at ordained ministry, but last year, she completed her master’s degree in theology and hasn’t ruled out going back to her dream someday. Her faith remains a driving force in her daily life.
On Tuesday, the couple — who met while both were working at Paine Webber in the ’80s — will celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary, not by going out to dinner but by serving it to others.
“Joe asked me where I wanted to go,” she said, “and I asked him if we could serve dinner at The Bowery Mission for women. He said, ‘Of course.’ ”
While she doesn’t wear a priest’s collar, Tamra has another type of neckwear that has special meaning: scarves.
Like many New Yorkers, she streamlined her wardrobe years ago to mostly black. But each day, she reaches in her closet for a neck scarf — many ornate and each with meaning— to add color and memories to her outfit.
“Last week, when there was news stories about the pope saying we need to be more concerned about the substance of Christian faith and less concerned about the social issues, I wore my scarf from the Vatican in solidarity with what the pope said,” she explained.
She owns about 70 scarves. Her first came from Joe in 1987, and most have been gifts.
“Some of those scarves are so pretty, I think they could be framed,” said Joe, 58.
On election night, Tamra Lhota will wear one purchased when she attended the 1988 GOP convention in New Orleans. “It’s the scarf I wear all the time to vote,” she said.
She thinks it could be lucky this year. “People always ask me how I can want to do ministry and politics — because politics can be so dirty,” she said. “But they are both about how things are and what they can be,” she said, quoting former New Jersey Gov. Tom Kean Sr.