De Blasio will be New York City’s first Democratic mayor in two decades, winning the election on a platform in opposition to the policies of three-term New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Lhota’s platform centered on fiscal responsibility, while de Blasio campaigned for reducing inequality in the city.

“My candidacy is a result of both my belief that I think that I offer more than the other candidates to best lead New York and my appreciation for the culture and community that make up this great city,” Lhota told The Hoya in February. De Blasio, whose margin of victory was the largest since five-borough elections began in 1897, emphasized his progressive platform in his victory speech.

“The people of this city have chosen a progressive path, and tonight we set forth on it together as one city,” de Blasio said in his acceptance speech.

Lhota’s campaign capitulated early, calling de Blasio a half-hour after the polls closed, according to a spokesperson for de Blasio.

“It was a good fight, and it was a fight worth having,” Lhota said to a crowd Tuesday night.

In his concession speech, Lhota also managed one last jab at his opponent, referencing de Blasio’s campaign tagline of New York as a “tale of two cities.”

“Despite what you might have heard, we are all one city,” Lhota said in his concession speech. “We want our city to move forward and not backward, and I hope our mayor-elect understands that before it’s too late.”

Lhota’s passion for government started during his time at Georgetown, when he ran for student government on a campaign platform that included investigating the finances of Healy Pub, an aspect foreshadowing his current fiscal policies in New York. His daughter Kathryn (COL ’13) did not respond to requests for comment.

Lhota, the former chairman of the Metropolitan Transit Association, launched his mayoral bid after impressing New Yorkers with his handling of the subway system during and after Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. However, he struggled with mayoral debates and campaign finances, raising a third of what de Blasio was able to solicit from his supporters, according to The New York Times.

Students from New York saw these problems throughout the race.

“He was a good candidate, I know he had some money issues in the beginning, and he could have articulated his positions better in the long run,” Staten Island resident Louis Cona (COL ’15) said. “I think the election was a referendum on a lot of the Bloomberg administration’s policies.”

Despite the differences in party affiliation, New York City resident Christopher Ferzli (COL ’15) compared de Blasio to former Republican Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

“He’s representing the Italian New Yorkers from Brooklyn especially, like Rudy did,” Ferzli said.