NEW YORK (AP) — Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sunday urged New Yorkers to vote Zohran Mamdani for mayor of New York City, giving the Democratic nominee one of his most significant endorsements to date in the contest to lead the nation’s biggest city.
Writing in the New York Times’ opinion section, Hochul said that while she and Mamdani diverged on some issues, they came together on the importance of addressing the affordability crisis in the city and across the state.
“But in our conversations, I heard a leader who shares my commitment to a New York where children can grow up safe in their neighborhoods and where opportunity is within reach for every family,” wrote Hochul, a Democrat. “I heard a leader who is focused on making New York City affordable — a goal I enthusiastically support.”
The stunning success of Mamdani, a 33-year-old self-described democratic socialist, in the race for New York City mayor has exposed divisions within the Democratic Party as it struggles to repair its brand more than half a year into Donald Trump’s presidency. Hochul’s endorsement is the latest sign that Democratic leaders who had been skeptical of Mamdani’s liberal views are beginning to consolidate around him.
Mamdani thanked Hochul for the boost, saying it’s a sign “our movement is growing stronger.”
Nice to see a New York Democrat with a brain, I guess.
This isn’t having a brain. This is having the moral compass of a windsock, and seeing that you’re getting wrecked in opinion polls, and trying to do an about face. Hochul was never the best choice. She was always a party-establishment shoo-in. Her opinion is only changing now because the public pressure was so overwhelming.
This is giving Hochul too much credit.
Have you already forgotten the congestion pricing debacle?
It’s good that she did this, but by no means should she be forgiven or continue to work in her position
Wasn’t congestion pricing a huge success that most everyone actually living there appreciates?
Yes but she delayed it for a while, then said she would scrap it, and she also made the prices lower.
She ratfucked it at the last second, delaying implementation and then when she brought it back post-election she lowered the prices, which dug a massive hole into the MTAs budget, which relied on that projected revenue for their future investments.
To be clear, I am all for congestion pricing. I live in one of the cities where it has been successfully implemented.