Andrew Yang appeared on CBSN Friday, a week after the former Democratic presidential candidate announced his bid to become mayor of New York City. The technology entrepreneur joins a Democratic primary crowded with candidates vying to replace lame-duck Mayor Bill de Blasio.
Yang, 46, has never held elected office but launched his political career when he ran for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, during which he outperformed De Blasio. Yang became known for his universal basic income platform which promised adult Americans $1,000 a month and aims to offer New Yorkers a modified version of this idea, which would give $2,000 a year to those in extreme poverty.
As New York City battles vaccine shortages, mayoral hopefuls have offered plans to rejuvenate a city slammed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Yang’s platform announces his intent to help small businesses and safely reopen schools.
Yang wrote, when announcing his campaign, “What we do in the coming months will determine our city’s trajectory for decades. I am running for mayor because I see a crisis – and I believe I can help.”
Democratic voters will cast their ballots in June 2021, and the winner of that primary is expected to prevail in the November general election.
Yang’s two-year presidential campaign defied expectations, launching him from a virtually unknown businessman and philanthropist to a viable candidate who qualified for every Democratic debate in 2019. He was the last candidate of color to appear in a Democratic debate, which he called “both an honor and a disappointment.”
Yang’s presidential campaign ended in February 2020, and he later endorsed Joe Biden.
