"This is a very sharp progressive platform. I believe she will follow through on it," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said. | Getty Bill de Blasio endorses Hillary Clinton

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio endorsed Hillary Clinton for president on Friday.

"She has said what she believes in. This is a very sharp progressive platform. I believe she will follow through on it," de Blasio said during an interview with MSNBC's "Morning Joe," adding that Clinton "has the ability to follow through on it."


De Blasio, a progressive champion and the former campaign manager for Clinton's successful Senate bid, had been holding back his endorsement of the former secretary of state for months. He argued on Friday that Clinton is best positioned of all the 2016 presidential candidates to successfully tackle income inequality in America.

"I'm supporting, I am endorsing Hillary Clinton enthusiastically because we have to take on income inequality. It is the issue of our time. We have to restore the middle class, and Hillary Clinton knows how to do it, will get it done, and has a progressive platform that speaks to all the changes we need, including progressive taxation, including uplifting working [people]," de Blasio said.

His backing is a blow to Sen. Bernie Sanders, as both men are strongly associated with the progressive wing of the Democratic party and have focused intensely on issues related to poverty and income inequality.

Still, he praised the independent Vermont senator.

"Bernie Sanders has done something very good for this country," de Blasio said. "I think Hillary Clinton is the person to get it done best. But I want to be very clear: Bernie Sanders has moved the discussion in this country in a very productive way, and I think we needed that."

The New York mayor said he would also "absolutely" campaign for Clinton.

The endorsement is a contrast from four months ago when de Blasio refrained from going to a lavish fundraiser for the former secretary of state on New York City's Roosevelt Island in June. At that time, de Blasio said he was "waiting to hear ...her larger vision to addressing income inequality."

Still, despite de Blasio's delay in endorsing Clinton, he has sought to play a role in the presidential race. Already in the 2016 cycle, de Blasio traveled to Iowa to highlight wealth disparity, a topic he's aimed to make his signature issue on the national stage. In Iowa de Blasio criticized Washington for not adequately addressing "rampant inequality" around the country, and he bashed the nation's capital's "hyper concentration of wealth" as "un-American."

De Blasio also started an activist group called The Progressive Agenda, which is hosting a forum for presidential candidates in Iowa City on Dec. 6.

Gloria Pazmino contributed reporting.