FORMER New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg indisputably has the money and name recognition to shake up the Democratic presidential race.

The 77-year-old is the Democrat who could run the most competitive campaign against U.S. President Donald Trump in 2020, Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s first 2016 campaign manager, said right after Bloomberg announced a late entry into an already crowded presidential contending field.

Like Trump, Bloomberg is a successful businessman. The former Wall Street banker, who founded a global media company, is worth at least US$53.4 billion, according to Forbes. He is the eighth richest person in America. The same list has Trump at 275th, with an estimated fortune of US$3.1 billion.

Bloomberg was mayor of New York from 2002 to 2013. He has been a Republican, and an independent, and registered as a Democrat last year.

He considered a White House run in 2016, but ultimately endorsed Hillary Clinton.

Bloomberg has poured millions of dollars into gun control and climate change initiatives and spent US$100 million backing Democrat candidates in the 2018 mid-term elections.

Bloomberg’s advisers said the media mogul was increasingly concerned none of the current Democrat candidates would beat Trump.

Leading up to the announcement, Bloomberg launched a TV ad blitz of at least US$31 million. Before this ad buy, former U.S. President Barack Obama held the record at US$24 million for the most money spent in a week on TV ads.

The founder of the Bloomberg L.P. media company had teased the idea of a presidential bid for weeks prior to entering the race, although he said in March that he would not run for president.

At 77, he’s the same age as another Democratic centrist, former Vice President Joe Biden. Bloomberg said he entered the race in part out of concern that Biden was faltering and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren was surging in the polls.

Analysts say a Bloomberg candidacy could do the most damage to the prospects of Biden, but the former vice president has put on a brave face and said he was not worried that Bloomberg would draw away centrist voters.

“As a former business magnate and mayor of New York City, Bloomberg has the two qualities essential to enter the presidential race at this late stage: money and name recognition,” Dr. Thomas Gift, a political scientist at University College London, told Newsweek.

“For that reason, I think Bloomberg can immediately become a heavyweight in the Democratic primaries. Beyond the attention he’d garner with his announcement, there’s plenty of space for Bloomberg to position himself as a moderate voice, especially with Joe Biden’s candidacy stuck in neutral.”

Responding to Bloomberg’s move, Trump dismissed the possible threat.

“Little Michael will fail,” Trump told reporters in a reference to the stature of the 1.73-meter Bloomberg. “He doesn’t have the magic to do well.

“There’s nobody I’d rather run against than little Michael,” Trump added. “He’s not going to do well but I think he’s going to hurt Biden actually.”

Biden has placed himself in the political center with South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, while Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Senator Warren run to his left.

“Michael’s a solid guy,” Biden told reporters. “I have no, no problem with him getting in the race. And in terms of he’s running because of me, last polls I looked at I’m pretty far ahead.”

Born on Valentine’s Day in 1942, Bloomberg grew up in a Jewish family in a suburb of Boston.

He was raised by his father, William Henry Bloomberg, a real estate agent, and his mother, Charlotte Rubens Bloomberg. He attended John Hopkins University, graduating in 1964 with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, where he would later serve on the board of trustees as chairman. In 1966, he received his MBA from Harvard.

Bloomberg began his career as a partner at Salomon Brothers, a Wall Street brokerage firm. When firm let him go in 1981, they left him with a sizable severance package worth US$10 million.

Bloomberg used the money to form his own company, Innovative Market Systems, a financial software company that used a computer system he created called the Bloomberg Terminal.

In 1986, the company was renamed Bloomberg L.P. The company experienced great success quickly and branched out into the media industry with nearly 200 offices worldwide today.

Bloomberg later gave up his position as CEO of Bloomberg L.P. in order to run for mayor of New York City.

Criticized for spending an unprecedented US$74 million of his own money for his campaign, the bulk of which was used for television ads and direct mail, Bloomberg defeated his opponent, Mark Green, in one of the closest elections in New York City’s history.

In the 2005 elections, Bloomberg was re-elected. In 2008, Bloomberg sought extension of New York City’s term limits law, in order to run for a third term in 2009, and he won again.

Considered to be socially liberal, Bloomberg supports gay marriage and abortion rights. He is also a strong advocate for gun control.

Supporters hail him as a strong manager who helped New York City recover from the Sept. 11 terror attacks and shepherded it through a recession, all while driving crime down and school test scores up. He spearheaded sweeping redevelopment projects that helped secure the city’s reputation as a premier destination but did less to provide adequate affordable housing for its poorest residents.

Despite his fame and wealth, Bloomberg faces huge hurdles to the nomination, analysts say.

Bloomberg’s bid has already drawn criticism that he was just another wealthy businessman trying to buy an election.

Two of the top Democratic contenders, Warren and Sanders, have been slamming billionaires and promise to decrease wealth inequality.

Bloomberg will also face questions about his record as a three-term mayor of New York, particularly from the Democratic Party’s vocal progressive wing, and about why he is needed in a race that still has 17 candidates vying to challenge Trump in November 2020.

“There is no constituency for Michael Bloomberg that isn’t already taken by one of the candidates who are already running,” said Charles Chamberlain, chair of the Vermont-based progressive group Democracy for America.

Bloomberg has been critical of Warren and her desire to institute a tax on the super-wealthy, which she would use to fund programs ranging from universal health care to free college tuition.

Biden, meanwhile, has turned in uneven debate performances and lagged behind his top rivals in fundraising. Bloomberg would likely seek to appeal to the same moderate voters drawn to Biden.

“It’s almost like he’s running because this billionaire wants to stop Elizabeth Warren,” Brad Bannon, a Democratic strategist who advises progressive groups and labor unions, said of Bloomberg.

Public opinion polls show most Democrats do not share Bloomberg’s dissatisfaction with the contenders. A Monmouth University poll taken in late October and early November found three-fourths of Democrats were satisfied with their choice of candidates and just 16 percent wanted someone else.

Kyle Kondik, of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said a Bloomberg run could conceivably draw support away from Biden but it remains to be seen how much backing he’ll receive in a crowded field.

“At first blush, yes, one might think Bloomberg would hurt Biden more than others,” Kondik said. “But we have to remember that sometimes voters don’t fit neatly into ideological categories.

“While neither is running hard to the left and both are older white men, voters might perceive key differences between them,” Kondik said. “Bloomberg has to actually show he can draw significant support in order to hurt Biden.”

Gift said Bloomberg may appeal to moderate Democrats “looking for a reasoned and pragmatic approach to policy, especially someone with a proven track-record of competence.”

“Unlike Elizabeth Warren, he also radiates electability, which is important to many Democrats who, above all else, prioritize beating Trump in the 2020 election,” Gift said.

Bloomberg, facing questions whether he understands the plights of average Americans, is prepared.

“I offer myself as a doer and a problem solver, not a talker,” he said in his statement. “And as someone who is ready to take on the tough fights and win.”(SD-Agencies)