Bill de Blasio, the first Democrat in more than two decades, has been sworn in as the new mayor of New York City.
Bill de Blasio took the oath of office outside his home a few minutes into the New Year, in line with tradition.
A grander inauguration ceremony will take place later at City Hall, with former President Bill Clinton administering the oath of office.
Bill de Blasio succeeds billionaire Michael Bloomberg, and has promised to govern with a liberal agenda.
He won November’s election by a record margin, contrasting himself with the pro-business Bloomberg years which he said had created a “tale of two cities”.
Michael Bloomberg is credited with leaving New York a safer, healthier and revitalized place after his 12 years in office. However, critics say his policies have widened the gap between rich and poor.
Democrat Bill de Blasio has been sworn in as the new mayor of New York City
Bill de Blasio, 52, was joined by his wife Chirlane McCray and their two teenage children outside their home in Brooklyn for the oath of office administered by state attorney Eric Schneiderman.
“To everyone, this is the beginning of a road we will travel together,” he said after he was sworn in.
He is New York’s first Democratic mayor since David Dinkins, who became the city’s first black leader in 1993.
Bill de Blasio has promised to reverse the city’s rising income inequality and end a controversial stop-and-frisk policy which has been criticized for disproportionately targeting black and Hispanic men.
He worked as an aide to David Dinkins when he was mayor and has also worked closely with the Clintons, managing Hillary Clinton’s successful 2000 run for the US Senate.
He was elected to New York City Council in 2001, representing his home area of Brooklyn, before becoming public advocate, the city’s official watchdog.
Bill de Blasio’s bid for the mayor’s job was aided by the implosion of the campaign of former congressman Anthony Weiner.
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With almost all votes counted, Bill de Blasio will succeed Mayor Michael Bloomberg to become the first Democrat leading New York City in two decades.
With 99% of votes counted in New York, Bill de Blasio secured 73% of the vote, convincingly defeating his Republican rival Joe Lhota, who polled 24%.
In his victory speech, Bill de Blasio said the poll showed that America’s largest city had chosen “a progressive path”, and he promised to make fighting income inequality his top priority.
Bill de Blasio is the city’s first Democratic mayor since 1993.
With almost all votes counted, Bill de Blasio will succeed Mayor Michael Bloomberg to become the first Democrat leading New York City in two decades
He ran Hillary Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign, and is seen as one of the most liberal politicians to run for mayor in decades.
Joe Lhota admitted defeat, saying the race had been a good fight and a fight worth having.
He ran the city’s public transport authority under Mayor Bloomberg, a Republican-turned-independent, and also worked in the administration of Rudolph Giuliani.
Last year, Joe Lhota was lauded for quickly getting the vast subway system running again after a huge storm, Sandy, flooded swathes of the city.
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New York City is choosing a successor to three-term Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a Republican-turned-independent.
Tuesday’s races are seen as an early test of the Republican and Democratic parties’ strengths ahead of next year’s critical congressional elections.
In New York City, Democratic mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio has taken a commanding lead in opinion polls over Republican Joe Lhota
In New York City, Democratic mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio has taken a commanding lead in opinion polls over Republican Joe Lhota, a former senior official in the mayoral administrations of Michael Bloomberg and his predecessor Rudolph Giuliani.
Bill de Blasio, the city’s public advocate, ran Hillary Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign. He is seen as one of the most liberal mayoral candidates in decades.
Under Michael Bloomberg, Joe Lhota ran the city’s public transport authority. He was lauded for quickly getting the vast subway system running again after a huge storm Sandy flooded swathes of the city last year.
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