The Park Hill area of Staten Island has long had a rather negative reputation. Drugs have driven up its crime statistics, and its only real claim to fame is that it was the breeding ground of the famed rap group the Wu-Tang Clan.

Now there is a possibility that a former resident may ascend to the presidency of Liberia, which has elicited mixed reactions from the growing African-born community here.

George Weah, who grew up in Monrovia, purchased a home on Park Hill Lane in Clifton, where his sister still lives (he currently lives in Florida). While a portion of Staten Island’s Liberian community is overjoyed at the prospect of the former soccer player’s victory, there are those who regard Mr. Weah’s candidacy as a travesty, one doomed to fail because he is inexperienced and would be easily manipulated by others. They worry that his would be a puppet presidency.

I contacted the president of the Liberian Association of Staten Island, George Curtis, to get his perspective on the election and Mr. Weah. “As president, I have always been neutral,” was all Mr. Curtis would say.

On the other hand, another member of the Liberian Association, Sam Daniels, said he was unafraid of expressing his opposition to a Weah victory. “Mr. Weah is an uneducated man whose candidacy is being promoted by murderers, thieves, and criminals. They expect him to provide them with clemency and safe haven.”

I asked Mr. Daniels about a former candidate, Varney Sherman, whose niece also lives in Staten Island. Mr. Sherman did not make the runoff and has endorsed Mr. Weah.

“Mr. Sherman is a very polished attorney and knows that he can manipulate Weah,” Mr. Daniels said. “That is why he has endorsed him. I do not believe that Mr. Weah will win. I believe the next president will be Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.”

Ms. Sirleaf would be the first female African president.

There is a certain romantic aura to Mr. Weah’s candidacy that may cloud the reality of what Liberia needs while at its crossroads of development. Mr. Weah grew up in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Liberia. His paternal grandmother, Emma Klonjlaleh Brown, whom Mr. Weah regards as his personal heroine, raised him. With his incredible athletic ability, he rose to international celebrity and is widely acclaimed as the greatest soccer player ever in Africa. He won the World Player of the Year in 1995 and retired in 2002. Now 39, he secured a place in the presidential runoff that took place Tuesday. The results will be known in about two weeks.

Mr. Weah may be a neophyte in the world of politics, but his rise from an impoverished beginning to superstar is being touted as a great inspiration to a country jaded by corrupt politicians. Staten Island has the largest Liberian community in the nation, because many fled to New York after the war there. Park Hill, Mr. Weah’s former residence, is now being gentrified by Liberians, Nigerians, and other Africans. The local stores now offer African foods and clothing, and entrepreneurs who work long hours to provide for their families are snapping up most new houses.

Liberians who voted in yesterday’s election also wish for a brighter future for their beloved homeland, but there are those here in Park Hill who believe a Weah victory would dash that hope forever.