It was announced this morning Ed Koch, the popular former Mayor of New York City, has died at 88 years-old. Koch game to the helm in New York at a time when the city’s spirits and finances were struggling.
ABCNews describes the situation as:
“Koch took office Jan 1, 1978, with New York City all but broke. Thousands of cops, firemen, sanitation workers and teachers had been laid off. Bridges were crumbling, the subways were caked in grime and graffiti, and crime was taking off.
Koch helped restore the city’s credit with budget cuts, and he revived the city’s spirits with his unflagging enthusiasm for all things New York, and an unflinching willingness to stand up to opponents.
By the time he left office at the end of 1989, New York was far from problem-free, but Gotham’s future no longer was in doubt.”
The popular Mayor would often greet citizens by inquiring, “How ‘m I doing?”
Koch attempted to run for governor in 1982 but his comments in an interview with Playboy magazine where he ridiculed the idea of living in the suburbs and rural areas clearly cost him the election.
His relationship with African Americans fell apart in 1988 after he said Jewish voters would be “crazy” if they voted for Rev. Jesse Jackson in his bid for the Democratic party nomination. Jackson finished a surprising second place in the primary against Michael Dukakis. The following year, the backlash by African American voters was more direct when they propelled David Dinkins to victory over Koch. Dinkins went on to beat Rudolph Giuliani and become the first African American mayor of New York City.
Recently Koch was treated for pneumonia and was recently readmitted because of fluid in his lungs.
