Metro

De Blasio wins primary

Democrat Bill de Blasio and Republican Joe Lhota were primed for an Election Day clash in November after both breezed to easy victories Tuesday night in the mayoral primaries.

De Blasio crushed second-place finisher Bill Thompson as unofficial results showed he also squeaked past the magic 40 percent mark needed to avoid an Oct. 1 runoff.

De Blasio’s victory was so sweeping that he even beat Thompson among black voters, 44 to 41 percent, according to exit polls.

Bill Thompson is refusing to concede.AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

But Thompson refused to concede, telling cheering supporters that “this is far from over” and “every vote, every voice, needs to be heard before the final decision is made.”

The Board of Elections quickly announced it was undertaking a recount.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn trailed in third place after spending months as the front-runner and apparent shoo-in before tanking in the polls.

On the Republican side, Lhota cruised to a double-digit victory over John Catsimatidis, with unofficial results showing he captured more than 50 percent of the vote.

Without mentioning de Blasio by name, Lhota blasted the public advocate’s “tale of two cities” campaign theme, calling it “nothing more than class warfare — an attempt to divide our city.”

“It’s a feeble retreat to the old playbook that promises a perfect world but delivers only special interest-founded policies,” the former deputy mayor under Rudy Giuliani told cheering supporters at the Hilton Hotel in Midtown. “It’s this kind of thinking that brought our city to the brink of bankruptcy and rampant civic decay.”

Christine Quinn pauses during her concession speech.Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Lhota said voters would be given a stark choice in November between his moderate brand of politics and de Blasio’s left-leaning policies.

“Over the course of the next two months, New Yorkers will see two completely different visions for the future of this city,” Lhota said.

Republican Joe Lhota celebrates his primary win over John Catsimatidis.REUTERS/Keith Bedford

De Blasio, who entered his election night headquarters in the Bell House concert hall in Brooklyn to the sound of Jay-Z’s “Run This Town,” vowed to “change the policies that have left behind so many of our fellow New Yorkers.”

“We move forward with a sense of mission, a cause greater than ourselves, a dedication to lifting up the lives of every New Yorker,” he said.

“We know that New York City is the greatest city on earth, and not simply because of our economic might, or our stunning skyline or our vibrant culture, but because we are a city that leads the nation that leads the world in remembering that we are bigger, we are stronger, we are better as a city when we make sure that everyone has a shot.”

The jubilant crowd — gathered just blocks from de Blasio’s Park Slope base — chanted “Mayor Bill” as a block party atmosphere ensued outside, featuring food vendors including Pizza Moto, SchnitzNYC, Dan and John’s Wings and the Red Hook Lobster Pound truck.

Mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio with his family.Mario Tama/Getty Images

De Blasio never mentioned the possibility of a runoff against Thompson, despite saying Monday that “the numbers say there will be a runoff.”

Thompson entered the Eventi Hotel in Manhattan to chants of “Three More Weeks,” and quickly took a swipe at outgoing Mayor Bloomberg, to whom he lost in 2009.

Anthony Weiner addresses his supporters.AP Photo/Jin Lee

“We started this fight more than four years ago when a small group of politicians conspire to take your voice away and let Mike Bloomberg buy a third term,” he said. “We took Mike Bloomberg on and we almost beat him. Now we are gonna finish what we started.”

Quinn tearfully conceded at the Dream Hotel in Chelsea, while disgraced ex-Congressman Anthony Weiner tossed in the towel after sneaking into Connolly’s Pub & Restaurant in Midtown, where former sexting partner Sydney Leathers had crashed the party.

Weiner’s humiliated wife, Huma Abedin, did not accompany the candidate to the polls.

Additional reporting by Beth DeFalco, Tara Palmeri, Georgett Roberts and Kevick Fasick