Bill de Blasio elected mayor of New York, first Democrat since 1989

Bill de Blasio was resoundingly elected New York's first Democratic mayor in two decades, running on an unabashedly liberal, tax-the-rich platform that contrasted sharply with billionaire Michael Bloomberg's record during 12 years in office.

De Blasio, 52, won a stunning landslide victory of 73.3 per cent of votes cast compared to 24.3 per cent for his Republican rival Joe Lhota, according to results from 99 per cent of polling stations. But of the 4.6 million registered voters in New York only 1.02 million actually cast a ballot.

In his victory speech, delivered in both English and Spanish, de Blasio declared that "our city shall leave no New Yorker behind".

"The people of this city have chosen a progressive path," said de Blasio, addressing a boisterous crowd of supporters at the YMCA in his home neighbourhood of Park Slope, Brooklyn. It was a far cry from the glitzy Manhattan hotel ballrooms that usually host election night parties.

De Blasio, 52, will take office on January 1 as the 109th mayor of the nation's largest city. He had been heavily favoured, holding an overwhelming lead in the polls for weeks.

Bloomberg, who first ran as a Republican and later became an independent, guided the city through the financial meltdown and the aftermath of 9/11. He is leaving office after three terms.