In the Running

Once Alienated, and Now a Force in Her Husband’s Bid for Mayor

By MICHAEL BARBARO

Todd Heisler/The New York Times

Chirlane McCray on Sixth Avenue in Brooklyn, with her husband, Bill de Blasio, before casting her vote on Primary Day.

Chirlane McCray, whose race, gender and evolving sexuality once made her feel like an outsider, has an outsize role in the mayoral campaign of her husband, Bill de Blasio.