Mayor Rahm Emanuel Will Not Run For Re-Election (VIDEO)

CHICAGO — Despite calling the elected position he's held since 2011 the job of a lifetime, Mayor Rahm Emanuel will not run for a third term in 2019. He made that announcement at a Tuesday morning press conference alongside his wife, Amy Rule.

"As much as I love this job and will always love this city and its residents, I've decided not to seek re-election," he said Tuesday.

Emanuel said he felt it was time to "pass the torch" in explaining his decision not to campaign for another term. He described his dedication as Chicago mayor as "100 percent, 24 hours a day, seven days a week," and his approach during his time in office was the same he has used throughout his 23-year career in public service, which also has included roles in two presidential administrations and three terms as a U.S. congressman. (Get Patch real-time email alerts and daily newsletters for Chicago.)

"This has been the job of a lifetime, but it is not a job for a lifetime," Emanuel said.

WATCH: Mayor Rahm Emanuel announces he will not run for re-election during a press conference Tuesday, Sept. 4.

The mayor now will focus on accomplishing what goals he can before his term ends, as well as helping to create a smooth transition of power for the next person elected. Emanuel planned to meet with cabinet members following Tuesday's press conference and prepare them for the "sprint to the finish line in May."

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"We have more to do, and from now until then, we'll do everything in our power to get it done and walk out the door, hopefully leaving Chicago and Chicagoans in a stronger place."

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Emanuel was elected as the city's 44th mayor in 2011, and he won a second term in 2015. But Emanuel and his administration have faced blistering criticism in the aftermath of the October 2014 fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald by Chicago police Ofc. Jason Van Dyke, whose first-degree murder trial is set to begin Wednesday.

A large, contentious field of candidates had been slowly building to oppose Emanuel in Chicago's upcoming Feb. 26 mayoral election. With the Nov. 26 filing deadline still around the corner, some of the individuals who will be on the ballot include:

• Dorothy Brown, Cook County Circuit Court Clerk
• Ja'Mal Green, community activist
• John Kozlar, 11th Ward alderman candidate in 2015
• Troy LaRaviere, Chicago Principals & Administrators Association president
• Lori Lightfoot, former Chicago Police Board president
• Garry McCarthy, former Chicago police superintendent
• Neal Sales-Griffin, 30-year-old tech entrepreneur
• Paul Vallas, former Chicago Public Schools CEO
• Willie Wilson, businessman and 2015 mayoral candidate

Although he didn't give specifics about his post-mayoral plans, Emanuel said he and his wife "will write a new chapter together" now that campaigning is no longer a concern and their three children are in college. The couple held hands throughout the press conference, and both were emotional as the mayor delivered his announcement.

"It will fill my eyes with tears to leave a job I love," he said as he explained how hard a decision it was not to seek another term. "And already my heart is full of gratitude."

Emanuel thanked his wife of 27 years for being "a remarkable first lady." He also said he was grateful to his parents for inspiring him to a life of public service.

But Emanuel saved his deepest thanks for Chicago voters and the acceptance he and his family have received from them over the years. He became visibly choked up telling the story of how his grandfather came to Chicago — "a city whose name he couldn't pronounce" — fleeing Eastern Europe at 13 in order to escape Jewish persecution nearly a century ago.

"In four congressional runs on the North and Northwest sides of Chicago and in two races for mayor, you — the people of Chicago and on the North Side — cast aside old history and voted for a Jewish kid with the middle name 'Israel'," he said. "I will always be profoundly grateful for that and what it means to my family."

Photo via the City of Chicago