Todd Heisler/The New York Times It was Bill de Blasio’s night.The first leg of a New York election that has been anything but predictable (just ask any pundit) is over.
Anthony D. Weiner and Eliot Spitzer will not cast off their scandals and return to public service.
Bill de Blasio, once a long-shot in the Democratic mayoral primary, won.
But it was not immediately clear whether he had avoided an Oct. 1 run-off with William C. Thompson Jr.
Joseph J. Lhota, the former transit chief and deputy mayor under Rudolph W. Giuliani, took the Republican primary.
So what happens now?
“The conventional wisdom,†said Jerry Skurnik, a longtime New York political consultant, “is that a run-off will benefit Lhota†by dividing Democrats until the end of the month.
Mr. Skurnik added: “But it’s also three more weeks of the Democrats sort of hogging the story, which gives him less time to get himself out there.â€
Still, he pointed out that this most Democratic of cities has shown an inclination to vote Republican for mayor.
Both men will move to the center, he said.
And in their attacks, they may raise the specter of two mayors from the 1990’s.
Mr. de Blasio will call Mr. Lhota a Giuliani acolyte.
Mr. Lhota may respond that Mr. de Blasio represents a return to the days of David N. Dinkins.
Here’s what else you need to know to start your Wednesday.
WEATHER
Just as you were coveting fall, and eyeing your sweaters: it’ll be sunny with a high of 91 degrees, with a chance of rain in the afternoon.
TRANSIT & TRAFFIC
- Mass Transit: Click for latest M.T.A. status.
- Roads: Click for traffic map or radio report on the 1s.
Alternate-side parking is in effect.
9/11 COMMEMORATION
- A reading of the names of victims of the 2001 and 1993 World Trade Center attacks begins at 8:39 a.m. at the National September 11 Memorial Plaza.
- Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and Billy Joel join the F.D.N.Y. Motorcycle Club for a 7 a.m. tribute ride down the West Side Highway.
- Twin beams of light near the site of the attack â€" known officially as “Tribute in Light†â€" will shine from sunset until dawn. (The bulbs are each 7,000 watts.)
- The Museum of Jewish Heritage and the Queens Botanical Garden offer free admission all day.
- The West Point Concert Band performs at 1 p.m. at Trinity Church on Wall Street. [Free]
COMING UP TODAY
- Everyone loves a fort. Instead of making one with your duvet, try a tour of those in Central Park, at noon. [Free]
- If you are an orchid fan, or just enjoy their company, the Manhattan Orchid Society is holding its monthly social and meeting, starting at 6:15 p.m. in Midtown.
- The education historian and activist Diane Ravitch speaks about her new book, “Reign of Error,†and the threats facing public schools, at 6 p.m.
- For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide.
IN THE NEWS
- Kenneth P. Thompson performed the rare feat of unseating an incumbent district attorney. He beat Charles J. Hynes of Brooklyn, who had served six terms. [New York Times]
- The disgraced assemblyman Vito J. Lopez failed to resurrect his political career. [New York Times]
- There were snarls in voting across the city â€" including some that had to be overcome by candidates themselves. [DNA Info]
- Observant Jewish drug-dealers in Brooklyn allegedly sent out mass texts informing their customers they would be working curtailed hours through the Jewish holidays. [New York Post]
- The stop-and-frisk police tactic has been a focus of the Democratic primary, and will endure as an issue until November. The Web site BKLYNER has an interactive article showing stops in 2012. [BKLYNER]
AND FINALLY…
Bill DeBlasio is 6-foot-5. Michael Bloomberg is, depending on whom you believe, either 5-foot-6 or 5-foot-10. That sets up the prospect, should Mr. DeBlasio win, of a lop-sided swearing-in ceremony.
We are, of course, above such humor. But if you insist on learning more, Gothamist has elaborated, complete with a photo mock-up.
Joseph Burgess contributed reporting.
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