Bloomberg on feeling disenfranchised

(Azi Paybarah / wnyc)

There's another race on Michael Bloomberg's mind.

At the No Labels conference, Bloomberg said the "closed" primary system in New York City means the 2013 mayor's race here will be largely shaped by very few voters.

"Three, or four, five percent of the people are going to put two people into the run-off" and then the general election, Bloomberg said.

Bloomberg said there's likely to be six or seven candidates running in that race. (Very likely candidates include: former NYC comptroller Bill Thompson, Rep. Anthony Weiner, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. Others who may enter the race are Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and City Comptroller John Liu.)

The mayor - sporting a bi-partisan colored purple tie - also said, "it's not clear that the average person feels themselves disenfranchised" even though they actually are. That schism would, if you think about it, make it hard to mount a successful third party candidacy, which, Bloomberg says isn't happening.