HONOLULU -- The wait is over. The race has begun. Mayor Mufi Hannemann announced Thursday he is running for governor. “We are leaderless at this point. The economy is in the tank. The educational system has become an embarrassment,” Hannemann said.

Hannemann’s candidacy sets up a showdown between the mayor and former congressman Neil Abercrombie in September’s democratic primary.

About 250 supporters packed Fern Elementary School cafeteria where Hannemann went to school years ago, to hear the long-awaited announcement. Hannemann’s campaign rented a couple of buses to bring in supporters that included city employees and members of the police union and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, which both endorsed Hannemann for governor.

Hannemann’s wife Gail did not attend the event. Campaign officials said she was on her way to the mainland to attend a nephew’s high school graduation.

During his speech, the mayor was quick to explain why he waited so long to declare his candidacy. “You see, my parents taught me to say, put first things first. The first pledge that I made to you as mayor is that I would leave this city better than I found it,” Hannemann said.

On rail transit, Hannemann said, “It is not a question of if rail will occur, it’s when rail will occur.”

The mayor blasted Gov. Linda Lingle and Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona for refusing to support rail. “I need to go to the governorship to move rail forward,” Hannemann said.

Aiona is running for governor as a Republican.

Hannemann confirmed he will not resign until the last minute, July 20th, the filing deadline for candidates. “I’m going to go all the way up to July 20 so that the taxpayers know that the mayor’s job is being done by someone who’s committed,” he said.

Hannemann sharply criticized candidate for governor Neil Abercrombie, saying he resigned his congressional seat too early, prompting an expensive special election. “What Neil did is he cost us nearly a million dollars. For the Democratic party, he took a safe Democratic seat and now put it in Republican hands,” Hannemann said.

Republican Charles Djou won the special election for the remaining seven months of Abercrombie’s term.

On civil unions, Hannemann said he does not know if he would veto the bill that currently sits on Lingle’s desk. “I will push for legislation that does not discriminate against anyone,” he said. “If (bill) 444 takes away from the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman, I could not support it.”

The announcement comes ahead of the Hawaii Democratic Party convention, which gets under way Friday in Waikiki.

For months, Hannemann accepted endorsements from unions even though he was not an official candidate.

"Mayor Mufi Hannemann has been raising money and holding campaign rallies for the governor's race since June of last year, all the while using the city government and Honolulu’s rail project in particular as political leverage. This latest pronouncement is just the latest step in planning to enter the race for governor sometime in July," Abercrombie said in a written statement.

Republican Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona also released a statement on Thursday.

"I look forward to putting my support for Hawaii's working families and small businesses against his record of raising taxes and increasing the cost of living for our residents on Oahu," Aiona said. "Hawaii can't afford him."

When he Hannemann steps down in July, his managing director Kirk Caldwell will become acting mayor.

Caldwell is interested in running for mayor and is expected to officially announce his candidacy.

Honolulu Prosecutor Peter Carlisle has said he will also enter the mayoral race when Hannemann steps down.

After Hannemann files, a special election will be held to fill the remaining two years of his term. It will be a winner-take-all race held at the same time as the Hawaii primary on September 18.