NEW YORK — David Dinkins, the first Black man to serve as mayor of New York City, has died at age 93, multiple news outlets are reporting.
According to The Associated Press, the New York Police Department said Dinkins died Monday in his Manhattan home, apparently from natural causes.
The news came shortly over a month after his wife, Joyce, died, the New York Times reported. She was 89.
Dinkins, a former Marine and graduate of Howard University and Brooklyn Law School, served as a member of the state Assembly and New York City Board of Elections president before taking office as president of the city’s Manhattan borough from 1986 to 1989, according to the news agency. In 1989, Dinkins, a Democrat, defeated then-Mayor Ed Koch in the primary and Republican Rudy Giuliani in the general election to become New York’s first Black mayor from 1990 to 1993, the AP reported. In 1993, he lost his re-election bid to Giuliani, who served as mayor from 1994 to 2001.
Dinkins’ survivors include a son and daughter, as well as two grandchildren, according to the AP.
Politicians, celebrities and other public figures took to social media overnight to pay tribute to Dinkins. Here’s what they were saying:
I extend my deepest condolences to the family of Mayor David Dinkins, and to the many New Yorkers who loved and supported him.
— Rudy W. Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) November 24, 2020
He gave a great deal of his life in service to our great City.
That service is respected and honored by all.
Had the great opportunity to interview Mayor Dinkins for 13TH. He was wonderful and warm and wise. May he rest in peace and power. https://t.co/KfZ97wRrds
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) November 24, 2020
We have lost another giant. My thoughts and prayers go out to the Dinkins family as we remember the Mayor’s great legacy in New York. https://t.co/y1BnZdCqcz
— Yvette D. Clarke (@RepYvetteClarke) November 24, 2020
My thoughts and prayers are with the family of Mayor David Dinkins, and to the many New Yorkers who loved and supported him.
— Bernard B. Kerik (@BernardKerik) November 24, 2020
May he rest in peace always.
I join all New Yorkers in mourning the passing of Mayor David Dinkins.
— Keith Powers (@KeithPowersNYC) November 24, 2020
Sending my prayers to the Dinkins family tonight. Thank you for your service to our city.
Rest In Peace.https://t.co/n7xglI2AaI
Read more here or here.
– The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Cox Media Group