Bill Thompson To Concede To Bill de Blasio in New York Mayoral Race
Out of the Race: Bill Thompson will concede the New York City mayoral race to opponent Bill de Blasio. Image by getty images
New York City mayoral candidate Bill Thompson, who placed second in the Democratic primary, will concede to top vote-getter Bill de Blasio and avert a bruising runoff, local media reported on Monday.
Thompson planned to make an announcement at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT), according to sources cited by New York’s Daily News and NY1 television.
Thompson’s campaign released the candidate’s schedule listing the news conference but did not elaborate on its purpose.
The winner of the Democratic nomination will face off against Republican Joe Lhota in the race to succeed Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who leaves office at the end of the year after three terms.
De Blasio won by far the most votes in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, but many ballots are still being counted. Thompson earlier vowed to stay in the race for the Democratic nomination until the count was complete.
A runoff could have been potentially damaging to Democrats ahead of the contest with Lhota, a deputy mayor under former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.
De Blasio has built his campaign around addressing income inequality and has called for higher taxes on the rich to pay for expanded pre-kindergarten programs, more affordable housing and reform to the police tactic of stop and frisk.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
