New York Mayor Bill de Blasio adds his name to the Democratic presidential field

New York mayor Bill de Blasio, head of the presidency of the country's largest city, announced on Thursday that he was joining the Democratic group of presidential candidates, promising in a campaign video that he was not going to be in the polls. it would "give priority to the workers".

"There is a lot of money in this world. There is a lot of money in this country. It's just in the wrong hands, "de Blasio said at the beginning of the video, in which he recounts his liberal agenda as mayor and pledges to stand up to President Trump. "I am a New Yorker. I know that Trump has been a tyrant for a long time. This is not news for me or anyone here, and I know how to accept it. "

De Blasio is expected to make his first public appearance later Thursday morning in the television series "Good Morning America" ​​on ABC. He plans to travel this week to Iowa and South Carolina to participate in a series of introductory campaigns.

The entry of another liberal legislature in the congested Democratic realm offers another option to the wing of the primary electoral body that seeks to counter the Trump era with more aggressive and disruptive policies than those of President Barack Obama.

His tenure in New York was marked by a dramatic policy change to support low-income residents, with new initiatives to support mental health services, provide more affordable housing, and create new options for living. early childhood education.

In his video, de Blasio extols his efforts to raise the city's minimum wage to $ 15, impose sick leave, expand access to health care and offer free pre-kindergarten classes.

"We have developed a program that gives priority to working families," he said.

As a late arrival to the race, de Blasio might not qualify for the first Democratic presidential debate in June, which requires winning 1% in three public polls or receiving 65,000 donors from at least 20 States by 13 June at the latest. Two other more recent entries, Montana Governor Steve Bullock and Colorado Sen. Michael F. Bennet are also unsure of qualifying for the debates.

Born in Manhattan, de Blasio spent most of his childhood in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After the divorce of his parents at the age of 7, he was raised mainly by his mother and his family. As a young adult, he adopted the family name of his family.

He returned to New York for university and after being a campaign manager for the then representative. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.) And then-Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), De Blasio was first elected in 2001 to the New York City Council as a representative in Brooklyn. He was then elected public defender of the city, where he became a critical spokesperson for the mayor of the time, Michael Bloomberg, paving the way for his first mayoral campaign in 2013.

De Blasio, 58, has radically reduced the practice, under Bloomberg's administration, of stopping and searching pedestrians to deter illicit firearms from ending up on the street. He attended a pre-kindergarten program that brought the number of 4-year-olds to the school of 19,000 in 2013, prior to the entry into office of Mr. de Blasio, to about 70,000 in 2018. He also increased funding for affordable housing and advocated for a freeze on rent increases.

He proposed a plan earlier this year to expand the city's public insurance option to ensure health coverage for all New Yorkers, including those who do not have legal permission to live in the city. country. He is in favor of legalizing the sale of marijuana in New York so that non-White communities, including those who have already been convicted, can take advantage of the new legal sector. During the 2016 presidential campaign, he was slow to offer his support to Clinton until October, while calling Sanders' campaign "very useful for this country and for the party."

In a party that values ​​diversity, de Blasio becomes the 14th white candidate for the presidency. But he is also the second candidate in the race for an interracial marriage, joining Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.). His wife, Chirlane McCray, a black poet and activist who described her sexual orientation as fluent, has long been one of her closest advisers.

"He deeply believes, ideologically, that the country is in trouble and that it is rooted in inequality in all its forms: race, income, sex, sexual orientation," said Peter Ragone, friend and advisor long time. "He believes that a tough government fighting for equality is the way to solve this problem."

A poll conducted in April by Quinnipiac University revealed that he was more popular in the city than whites among black and Hispanic residents. Sixty-six percent of black voters approved its performance, compared to 40 percent of Hispanics and 31 percent of Whites.

But the same survey also revealed a significant opposition to his interest in a higher position. Sixty-six percent of New York voters said he should not run for president. Forty-seven percent said that such a race would be bad for the city.

On Monday, he held a press conference in Manhattan's Trump Tower public hall to discuss an initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the city's buildings.

He was greeted by shouting protesters with signs such as "the worst mayor of all time". Shortly before starting to speak, the sound system began playing Tony Bennett's music for the apparent purpose of covering his voice. Eric Trump, the son of the president and head of the Trump organization, tweeted that "imposing a press conference on our pop-up in our lobby is just childish".

De Blasio reacted by threatening Trump with fines of several million dollars if he did not improve his buildings as required by the city's new laws.

"Here's a message for President Trump: do not play with your hometown," Blasio said. "Correct your buildings and, as long as you're there, correct your policies."