Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on Monday that he has decided against an independent run for president in 2016.
In a post published on Bloomberg View, Bloomberg cited his fear that he would play the spoiler and hand over the presidency to one of the likely Republican presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.
“When I look at the data, it’s clear to me that if I entered the race, I could not win,” Bloomberg said. “I believe I could win a number of diverse states — but not enough to win the 270 Electoral College votes necessary to win the presidency. In a three-way race, it’s unlikely any candidate would win a majority of electoral votes, and then the power to choose the president would be taken out of the hands of the American people and thrown to Congress.”
Bloomberg began flirting about running and making history as a third-party candidate as polls indicated Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders could win their parties nomination. The former New York Mayor saw an opportunity to serve as a compromise candidate for Republican and Democratic voters who would be unsatisfied with their respective parties’ nominees.
But as Hillary Clinton showed signs of overcoming her Democratic challenger and public opinion turned against Trump, Bloomberg opted out for the good of the country, in his words. “As the race stands now, with Republicans in charge of both Houses, there is a good chance that my candidacy could lead to the election of Donald Trump or Senator Ted Cruz. That is not a risk I can take in good conscience,” he wrote.
Bloomberg berated Trump for running “the most divisive and demagogic presidential campaign I can remember, preying on people’s prejudices and fears.”
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