[1] Thompson had won the Democratic primary election on September 15 with 71% of the vote over City Councilman Tony Avella and Roland Rogers.

[2] This was the fifth straight mayoral victory by Republican candidates in New York, and the most recent to date, despite the city's strong Democratic lean in national and state elections.

[3] Attempts to put this decision to a popular referendum,[3] to reverse it in the federal courts[4] or to override it with state legislation were unsuccessful.

Bloomberg's most prominent opponent was Bill Thompson, who could (similarly) have run for a third term as New York City Comptroller in 2009, but instead sought and won the Democratic nomination for Mayor.

[2][9][13] City Comptroller Bill Thompson and Councilman Tony Avella held their first televised debate on Wednesday, August 26, at the New York Public Library.

"After eight years of a Republican mayor who is focused on developers and the wealthy, I think New Yorkers are looking for change," said Thompson, while Avella declared that the "arrogance of billionaire Mike Bloomberg to think he's so important that he can overturn the term limits law, I think, is disgraceful.

In a report filed days before the election, the magazine likened Bloomberg to Marcus Licinius Crassus:[37] The Mayor has ruled us well, but he has infantilized us.