Bill Lynch, one of the city’s best-known political consultants who played a pivotal role in electing David Dinkins as New York’s first African-American mayor, died yesterday.

He was 72 and died of complications related to kidney disease.

Mayor Bloomberg said Lynch “stood at the center of one of our city’s most important moments,” referring to Dinkins’ election in 1989.

“Many of the most influential political leaders — here in the city and also on the national level — sought his counsel. He lived a remarkable life, and my thoughts and prayers are with his family,” Bloomberg said.