Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Marc Molinaro

Marc Molinaro

  • In Our Covid Recovery, A Return to Humanity

    American flag New York path ahead

    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    The COVID-19 pandemic has taken so much from us all – over 100,000 lives taken too soon; months spent alone; businesses shuttered forever; and birthdays, proms, goodbyes, graduations, ball games, firsts and lasts missed. It must mean something, but only we can give it meaning through our actions, preparation, kind gestures, and deep love of all that we took for granted, including our shared connection. We have an opportunity to ensure all that we lost was not in vain. As a nation, as a people, we have a solemn

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  • Predictions! Experts Look Ahead to 2020 in New York Politics

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    (photo: Kristen Artz/Mayoral Photo Office)


    As we usually do around this time of year, Gotham Gazette asked New York politicos to look into their crystal balls for predictions for the year ahead. Below you'll find insights from elected officials, advocates, analysts, and others who are tuned in to New York politics.

    We know that 2020 will be interesting given that lawmakers in Albany must close a massive budget gap while the entire Legislature is on the

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  • Tax Issues at Center of State Elections, Albany Year to Come

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    Gov. Cuomo (photo: Don Pollard/Governor's Office)


    When the dust settles on the 2018 elections, whoever is governing the state will be faced with problems like what to do about NYCHA and the MTA, and how New York should respond to climate change, among many others. Another

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  • 10 Things to Watch on Election Day in New York

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    (photo: The Governor's Office)


    New Yorkers will head to the polls on Tuesday, November 6, to vote for federal and state candidates in an election that could radically alter the direction of the state and the entire nation. Every seat in the state Legislature is on the ballot, as are the joint ticket of governor-lieutenant governor, the positions of state comptroller and attorney general, New York’s 27 seats in the House of Representatives, and one U.S. Senate position.

    Democrats, hoping to ride a surge of engagement in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s

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  • Without Cuomo, Other Candidates for Governor Present Ideas in Tempered Debate

    Cuomo Molinaro Miner Hawkins Sharpe

    Cuomo, Molinaro, Miner, Hawkins, Sharpe


    New York’s gubernatorial candidates (minus Governor Andrew Cuomo, who declined the invitation) took the stage at Albany’s College of Saint Rose Thursday evening for the second debate of the general election, but, unlike the first, one that did not once summon the name “Trump” and focused more on the intricacies of running the

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  • Molinaro Pledges Education 'State of Emergency,' Council of Mayors

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    Marc Molinaro (photo: @marcmolinaro)


    Republican gubernatorial nominee Marc Molinaro intends to declare a “state of emergency” for struggling school districts to address a plethora of issues and provide districts with more control over their destiny.

    Speaking to Gotham Gazette after his Tuesday speech at the Association for a Better New York, Molinaro said that the dismal status of some school districts, especially in upstate cities, requires extraordinary action and significant facets of educational policy-making devolved to local

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  • Climate Change, and What To Do About It, Largely Missing from Governor’s Race

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    Gov. Cuomo and former VP Gore in 2015 (photo: The Governor's Office)


    New York’s 2018 gubernatorial election has largely been eclipsed, like so many things in United States politics, by a massive Trump-shaped shadow. Within that shadow, Andrew Cuomo and Marc Molinaro have argued about the health of upstate New York, management of the MTA, and dueling corruption charges, among other topics. But one looming issue, climate change, has seemed

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  • Top Republican Strategist on Where the New York GOP Went Wrong and What To Do About It

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    former Gov. George Pataki at the 2018 NY GOP convention


    The New York Republican Party is on the brink -- perhaps not of extinction, but of a certain type of political wilderness -- and one longtime party figure says he knows where things went wrong and what to do about it.

    Republicans have not occupied a statewide office since George Pataki left the governor’s mansion at the end of 2006, and barring a massive upset in November, the statewide offices will continue to be occupied by Democrats from 2019 through 2022. Meanwhile, the state Senate,

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Cuomo-Molinaro Debate Analysis

    mxm logo

    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    October 23, 2018 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Cuomo-Molinaro Debate Analysis

    cuomo molinaro debate 277The day after the Andrew Cuomo-Marc Molinaro gubernatorial debate on CBS, hosts Jarrett Murphy and Ben Max break down what went down.

    Listen to the conversation with the two candidates and let us know what you

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  • Cuomo Takes Aggressive Approach to Molinaro in Debate with Limited Substance

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    Andrew Cuomo, left, and Marc Molinaro


    Governor Andrew Cuomo has said that debates can be a “disservice to democracy” and on Tuesday he ensured that what is likely to be his only general election debate provided limited clear and substantive discussion for voters to chew on ahead of the November 6 election.

    A Democrat seeking a third term as governor, Cuomo took an aggressive and at times hostile approach to his debate with Republican nominee Marc Molinaro, currently the Dutchess county executive, filmed Tuesday afternoon at CBS studios in

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  • Molinaro Reveals Reason He Didn’t Vote for Trump

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    Marc Molinaro during Tuesday's debate (photo via @CBSNewYork)


    Marc Molinaro, the Republican nominee for governor of New York, has long-insisted that he did not vote for Donald Trump in 2016, saying that he “had significant differences at the time” and decided to write in former Republican U.S. Rep. Chris Gibson for president.

    As he’s tried to straddle the Trump divide in the New York Republican Party and appeal to independent and moderate voters in an uphill quest to

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  • Senate Republicans Leave Molinaro Out of Only Hope Messaging

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    Marc Molinaro & Senator Marty Golden campaign (photo: @marcmolinaro)


    Republicans fighting to keep control of the state Senate this year have been adamant that their continued majority in the chamber is the only thing standing between New York and socialism. And with the party playing defense in a number of races, there’s a certain logic to motivating voters to come out based on the idea that their district could be the one that determines who controls the entire Senate, especially resonant given the one-seat margin the Republican conference holds.

    But the rhetoric

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  • Cuomo Challengers Level Critiques; Will Anything Stick?

    Cuomo made in the shade

    Gov. Cuomo (photo: Mike Groll/Govenor's Office)


    With less than a month till voters go to the polls on November 6, it appears Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, has little cause for worry as he seeks a third term. His favorability among voters may have dropped but public polling has shown him holding consistently wide leads over his opponents. His campaign war chest, though massively depleted by a bruising primary battle, still remains formidable at $9 million-plus, dwarfing his four general election competitors. And he is instantly recognizable to most voters,

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  • How ‘Blue’ is New York?

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    Gov. Cuomo (photo: New York State Democratic Party)


    New York is frequently portrayed as one of the most solidly Democratic, “blue” states in the country, along with places like California and Massachusetts. And New York reliably votes for Democrats in presidential elections, has two Democratic United States senators, a majority of its U.S. House members are Democrats, it has exclusively elected Democratic governors and other statewide state-level officials since 2006, and a wide majority of its state Assembly members is Democratic.

    But the state Senate is split

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  • Post-Primary Campaign Finance Filings Show Cuomo’s Already Spent $28 Million

    govandrewcuomo office

    Photo: Mike Groll/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)


    Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat running for reelection to a third term, successfully claimed the Democratic Party nomination earlier this month after a bitter primary battle against actor and education activist Cynthia Nixon. But the victory came at significant cost as Cuomo spent more than $20 million this year alone, nearly ten times what Nixon spent in total as she attempted to unseat him.

    Cuomo, who won with 64.4 percent of the vote to Nixon’s 34.4 percent in the September 13 primary, is headed into the

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  • Gubernatorial Candidates Miner, Sharpe & Hawkins Lay Out Campaign Platforms, Cases Against Cuomo

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    Miner, Sharpe, Hawkins (l-r)


    Governor Andrew Cuomo defeated Democratic primary challenger Cynthia Nixon fairly handily on September 13, when attention began to shift to the race between Cuomo and Republican gubernatorial nominee Marc Molinaro, currently the Dutchess county executive.

    But while Cuomo and Molinaro are the nominees of the two major parties, and each will also appear on at least two other party ballot lines in November, there are three other candidates running serious general election campaigns for governor of New York. (It remains to be seen if

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  • Republican Slate Seeks to End Statewide Drought

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    Molinaro, Killian, Wofford, Trichter (l-r)


    With the primary election over and the Democratic statewide ticket in clear view, attention across the state shifts to the general election, with the November 6 vote fewer than 50 days away. Republicans fought no statewide primaries and have had a slate of candidates ready and raring to take on their Democratic opponents. Those GOP nominees have been raising money and campaigning but somewhat crowded out of the conversation as Democrats waged highly contested races for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney

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  • Alleging Lies, Molinaro Seeks to Have Cuomo Attack Ad Pulled

    trump minimolinaro

    Screenshot of Cuomo campaign ad


    In two advertisements issued this week, Governor Andrew Cuomo’s campaign went after Republican gubernatorial nominee Marc Molinaro, comparing the Dutchess county executive to President Donald Trump and alleging that he has participated in pay-to-play politics, with both ads full of accusations that Molinaro and his campaign vehemently denied.

    Molinaro’s campaign aimed to disprove Cuomo’s accusations, which came just a few weeks before the state primary election, in which Cuomo is being challenged by Cynthia Nixon, and hardly a

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  • Promising Efficiency and Performance, Molinaro Releases MTA Turnaround Plan

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    Marc Molinaro on the subway (photo: @marcmolinaro)


    Republican gubernatorial candidate Marc Molinaro said that his plan to fix the state’s ailing subway system is “not sexy,” but argued Tuesday that he will fix the MTA by doing away with what he said is Governor Andrew Cuomo’s approach, marked by uncontrolled spending, prioritizing “vanity projects” over key improvements and frequent fighting with Mayor Bill de Blasio.

    For Molinaro, the chief problem facing the subway system is not lack of funding, but out-of-control costs allowed by bad management. His ...

  • What You Can Learn From Gubernatorial Candidates' Campaign Websites

    cuomo campaign site

    (image: Cuomo campaign website home page)


    The digital presence of elected government officials and candidates seeking elected office – whether it’s a fledgling Instagram account with a humble following or a tweet gone viral with tens of thousands of retweets – cannot be underestimated in today’s world. Social media provides direct access between candidates and voters, and can remove traditional barriers between constituents and their elected officials.

    Many, for instance, have partly ascribed ...

  • What New York Voters Care About Ahead of State Elections

    govcuomo rochester

    (photo via the Governor's office)


    The latest statewide poll from Quinnipiac University shows New York voters’ preferences in the races for governor, attorney general, and others. But it also divulges the issues that New Yorkers say are most important to them in the run-up to the September primary and November general elections.

    One question asked what issue voters prioritize most in their vote for governor, with a short list of issues

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  • Statewide Candidates File July Fundraising Numbers

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    Gov. Cuomo at a funding event (photo: The Governor's Office)


    With less than two months till the September 13 primary election, candidates running for state office filed campaign financial disclosure reports with the New York State Board of Elections by the Monday deadline, showing fundraising and expenditures from a six-month period between January 16 and July 16.

    Governor Andrew Cuomo, the two-term incumbent Democrat who is running for reelection, continues to maintain an overwhelming funding advantage with more than $31 million in his campaign coffers. Cuomo

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  • Molinaro Starts Campaign on Attack, Policy Plans to Come

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    Marc Molinaro, left (photo via @marcmolinaro)


    Nearly three months after launching his campaign for governor, presumptive Republican nominee Marc Molinaro has spent most of his time hammering incumbent Andrew Cuomo, a two-term Democrat, on ethics scandals, economic development spending, and other issues. But key questions remain about Molinaro’s own policy stances.

    “I know that campaigns are marathons, not sprints,” he recently told Gotham Gazette, after

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  • On Taxes, the MTA and More, Molinaro Discusses Developing Campaign Platform

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    Marc Molinaro (photo: Ben Max/Gotham Gazette)


    Ask Marc Molinaro about nearly anything, and the Republican nominee for governor will likely bring the conversation back to property taxes and affordability.

    “My focus, ultimately, will be to drive down costs on middle class New Yorkers,” he said in a Wednesday interview with Gotham Gazette. “That focus, again, has to be on property taxes because New York, unlike every other state in America, forces more of its state spending on property taxpayers. Property taxpayers -- small tax base; large, acute burden on

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: State Party Conventions & Nominations

    mxm logo

    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    May 25, 2018 - Max & Murphy Podcast: State Party Conventions and Nominations

    It's state party convention and nomination season as we head toward the fall elections, with state-level primaries in September and the general election in November. Political parties are holding their nominating conventions and deciding which candidates to formally back. The parties that have dedicated ballot lines -- Democratic, Republican, Independence, Conservative, Green, Working

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