Yesterday afternoon, Joe Lhota, who recently emerged as a leading contender for the Republican nomination in the mayor’s race, sat down with Politicker and discussed his campaign’s future and challenges moving forward, as well as a number of hot-button policy issues. Throughout the interview, Mr. Lhota emphasized his experience while stressing he was not planning to be a clone of former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, whose administration he served in, and that he is not defined by his year running the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, a job that raised his profile in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Mr. Lhota, who formally announced his candidacy this morning, said he first seriously thought about making a bid for the city’s highest elected office last year.

“In all honesty, when I thought about running for mayor, it could go back years ago. I don’t think you could be a deputy mayor without thinking [about it] some day. I was even acting mayor a couple times. I started giving serious consideration to this in the middle of 2012,” he answered, sipping coffee. “Post-Sandy, it crystallized for me, because I saw an avenue to win; I saw an avenue to get the nomination … I looked at the candidates running for mayor and I said, ‘You know what? I have the leadership skills necessary to get the job done.’ The city doesn’t need management, it needs leadership.” Read More