March 07, 2016 05:38 PM UTC

Michael Bloomberg Will Not Run for President in 2016

• 4 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

Former New York City Mayor and billionaire media mogul Michael Bloomberg will not run for President in 2016.

As Politico reports, Bloomberg had been considering an Independent campaign for President but ultimately decided that he didn’t want to risk doing anything that might help elect Republican candidates such as Donald Trump or Ted Cruz to the White House:

Bloomberg’s decision to back away from an independent bid is a relief for Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, who could have seen support bleed over to Bloomberg in a three-way race.

In an editorial he posted on Monday, Bloomberg said that if he had run, it was unlikely that any candidate would win a majority of electoral votes and that the responsibility of choosing the next president would be kicked to Congress.

“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,” Bloomberg said.

For several months Bloomberg had been considering a potential run as an Independent, though he had always been clear that his decision would be heavily influenced by whomever emerged as the likely Democratic and Republican frontrunners.