Michael Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York, has revealed he will not enter the presidential race as he fears it would be easier for Donald Trump to win if he did so.
Mr Bloomberg had revealed earlier this year he was considering running as a third party candidate because he was unimpressed by both Mr Trump, and the stumbles of Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton.
Yet the 73-year-old said he feared a three-way race could lead to the election of a candidate who would “imperil the security and stability of the United States” - namely Mr Trump.
Mr Bloomberg called the tycoon’s presidential run “the most divisive and demagogic presidential campaign I can remember, preying on people’s prejudices and fears.”
Writing on Bloomberg View, part of an extensive media empire he owns, Mr Bloomberg said: “Over the last several months, many Americans have urged me to run for president as an independent, and some who don’t like the current candidates have said it is my patriotic duty to do so. I appreciate their appeals, and I have given the question serious consideration.”
He added: “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 said he was alarmed by Mr Trump’s threats to bar Muslim immigrants from entering the country and to initiate trade wars against China and Japan, and he was disturbed by Mr Trump’s “feigning ignorance of David Duke,” the white supremacist leader whose support Mr Trump initially refused to disavow.
In December, Mr Bloomberg commissioned a poll to see how he would compete with Mr Trump or Ms Clinton, but the poll’s results have not been disclosed.
In both 2008 and 2012, Mr Bloomberg conferred with advisors and commission polls to assess his chances of making it to the White House, only to decide against a run.
While there have been third party or independent candidates before – businessman Ross Perot ran in both 1992 and 1996, and activist Ralph Nader has stood in numerous elections – no independent candidate has ever been elected to the White House.
“We cannot “make America great again” by turning our backs on the values that made us the world’s greatest nation in the first place,” Mr Bloomberg said in a he said on Monday.
“I love our country too much to play a role in electing a candidate who would weaken our unity and darken our future - and so I will not enter the race for president of the United States.”
