NEW YORK — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio jumped into the 2020 presidential race on Thursday, joining more than 20 Democrats vying to unseat President Donald Trump.

De Blasio announced his candidacy in a video that touts his progressive accomplishments in New York and his fights against the Trump’s Republican administration on issues such as immigration and climate change.

“I’m a New Yorker, I’ve known Trump’s a bully for a long time,” he said. “This is not news to me or anyone else here. And I know how to take him on.”

The announcement came ahead of de Blasio’s Thursday appearance with first lady Chirlane McCray on “Good Morning America,” where protesters greeted him with chants of “Liar!” and loud whistles that could be heard on air. The mayor was unbothered as he made his case to a national audience, calling the protests “a little serenade.”

De Blasio will leave the city later Thursday for his first weekend of official campaigning in Iowa and South Carolina, key presidential primary states that he has visited in recent months.

The mayor’s entry into the race ends months of speculation about whether he would become the first sitting New York City mayor to run for president since 1972 despite polls showing little appetite for his campaign.

More than three-quarters of city voters said de Blasio should not run for president in a survey published last month. And he got support from just 1 percent of Democratic voters in an Ipsos/Reuters poll released Wednesday that showed former Vice President Joe Biden leading the pack.

Some people at the mayor’s favorite YMCA in Park Slope have even tried to discourage him from jumping into the race by posting flyers inside.

Trump himself — whom de Blasio called “Con Don” — seized on the mayor’s apparent unpopularity in a Thursday morning Twitter post.

“The Dems are getting another beauty to join their group. Bill de Blasio of NYC, considered the worst mayor in the U.S., will supposedly be making an announcement for president today,” the president tweeted. “He is a JOKE, but if you like high taxes & crime, he’s your man. NYC HATES HIM!”

De Blasio’s announcement video, titled “Working People First,” starts with a version of a refrain that de Blasio debuted in a speech earlier this year: “There’s plenty of money in this world. There’s plenty of money in this country. It’s just in the wrong hands.”

It touts his policy initiatives such as a law requiring employers to provide paid sick leave and the city’s universal pre-kindergarten program, a signature achievement of his administration. He also appears to take credit for raising the minimum wage to $15, which was actually done at the state level.

“As president I will take on the wealthy, I will take on the big corporations. I will not rest until this government serves working people,” de Blasio said. “As mayor of the largest city in America, I’ve done just that.”

The video does not mention the myriad issues that have dogged de Blasio at home, such as the scandals that have plagued the New York City Housing Authority, a continuing affordable housing crisis, and investigations into the mayor’s fundraising practices.

De Blasio’s presidential bid will likely take him away from the city over the next several months as his administration grapples with such problems. Republican City Councilman Joe Borelli launched a petition demanding that he resign as mayor while he campaigns — something de Blasio has said he will not do.

Observers have regarded a de Blasio presidential campaign as a quixotic or even absurd enterprise. Some allies of the mayor have described the idea of his run as “insane” and “idiotic,” Politico New York has reported.

But de Blasio has emphasized his history of defying political expectations.

“The poll that actually matters is the election, so New Yorkers have twice said that they want me to lead them,” de Blasio told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Thursday. “And I think about polling in general: It’s not where you start, it’s where you end.”

Watch de Blasio’s full announcement video below.

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