Tom Suozzi outside a debate (photo: @Tom_Suozzi)

U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi is pitching himself as a “common sense Democrat” as he runs for his party’s gubernatorial nomination in this month’s primary election.

The third-term Congressman from Long Island, whose district is mostly in Nassau County but includes part of eastern Queens, has been on the attack against his chief rival, Governor Kathy Hochul, as he attempts to corner much of the same moderate Democratic base and overcome the governor's formidable advantages, namely holding the position of governor and an immense fundraising lead. The choice for Democratic voters is among Suozzi, Hochul, and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who is running to their left.

Suozzi's positions align with Hochul's more often than not, so he is campaigning on his track record as a “proven executive,” having once served as a town mayor and county executive during his 30 years in politics. He has framed Hochul, who also held local office and, briefly, a seat in Congress, as unprepared or unwilling to take the necessary steps to improve the state in essential ways.

Suozzi is running on his experience and accomplishments, but also a few proposals unique in the field, including on tightening the state’s bail laws and reducing taxes and government spending.

“If Democrats want to keep New York state in Democratic hands, they should elect Tom Suozzi in the Democratic primary,” he said in a recent podcast interview with Gotham Gazette. “I’ll run [New York State] better, more effectively, more efficiently, and better for the taxpayers, with the people’s interest at heart.”

On issues like abortion, Suozzi has argued there's not much daylight between himself and Hochul, while on gun control, he’s pitched a much stronger record than the formerly NRA A-rated governor, who represented a conservative area of Western New York. In the interview, he said he agreed with Hochul's embrace of abortion protections but would have put more stress on preventing unwanted pregnancies with education and contraception.

A former mayor of Glen Cove, Long Island, Suozzi said he was “running on the issues that people care about": crime, taxes and affordability, and education. He added government corruption to that list when Hochul's first lieutenant governor, Brian Benjamin, resigned after a federal indictment. Hochul, in office less than a year after taking over for the disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo upon his resignation, has already had two lieutenant governors.

Suozzi himself has been dogged by allegations that he hid stock trading activity while serving in Congress, which he attributed to a "paperwork error" at a recent debate. “The reality is we've corrected it and we're moving forward,” he said. In a previous debate stage appearance, Suozzi – who made more than $360,000 in taxable income last year from his Congressional salary and investments, according to tax returns – said he was in favor of banning state elected officials from trading stocks.

For Suozzi, a combination of crime and affordability are stifling the economy and driving residents out of state.

"People are not coming back to their office buildings in New York City because they don't feel safe. They don't feel safe to take the subway…and it's not COVID, it's crime,” he said at the first debate. New York's high taxes of all kinds have made the state "uncompetitive," Suozzi’s platform states.

Suozzi and Williams have both been harsh critics of Hochul's handling of the opaque state budget process and, in particular, a massive stadium development project for the Buffalo Bills funded by taxpayers to the tune of $850 million and pushed through behind closed doors in the final days of negotiation. (Hochul's husband is general counsel of the company that holds the Bill's current concessions contract, a relationship Suozzi and others have been quick to point out.)

Some differences of position have emerged during the campaign. Suozzi is against the right to vote for noncitizens, while Hochul believes it should be up to localities to decide and Williams supports it. On a two-year moratorium on fossil fuel-burning crypto-mining that Hochul has refused to opine on as she reviews a bill passed by the Legislature, Suozzi said he supports a shorter moratorium while Williams wants the bill signed right away. And Suozzi said he would delay Manhattan congestion pricing to ease the burden on commuters and businesses after Hochul revealed the program had stalled amid federal questions. Williams said congestion pricing should be advanced as quickly as possible.

Suozzi's platform focuses on policing and gun violence, tax relief, economic revitalization, education, housing, infrastructure, and government ethics, though he offers limited policy detail on several fronts. He has said relatively little on the campaign trail about the climate, healthcare, childcare, or the MTA -- when pressed in the interview with Gotham Gazette about what changes he would make to run the regional transit authority better, he said he would first need to become governor in order to get under the hood and formulate a plan.

Asked for more on some of these topics, his campaign pointed to his track record in Congress co-sponsoring the Green New Deal and negotiating $10 billion for New York public transit in the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure legislation passed last year. Campaign spokesperson Jason Elan said Suozzi supports federal childcare legislation and creating universal healthcare through a federal option. The campaign did not respond to questions about state level proposals that he would push for if elected governor, including whether Suozzi supports the New York Health Act for state-run single-payer health care.

While he has proposed the state uses federal aid from the American Rescue Plan and higher than forecasted tax revenues to ease the burden on taxpayers, Suozzi has said climate solutions are a federal project. “[We] can't do it all by ourselves here in New York state where we're pushing our utility rates through the roof and it's hurting the people that can least afford to pay their utility rates,” he said in a debate.

Tax Relief and Affordability
Suozzi sees affordability as one of the most serious threats to the state's vitality. He wants to increase state local education aid upon the condition that localities reduce the property taxes that often fund education and he pledges to replace education mandates with "guidelines," giving localities flexibility in spending tax dollars. He also wants to place permanent "circuit-breakers" or caps on residential property taxes while incentivizing counties to reduce Medicaid costs.

Suozzi wants to cut regulations for small businesses and establish a New York State Public Bank to support small business loans and homeownership.

Infrastructure and Economic Development
Suozzi, like Hochul and Williams, supports the development of renewable energy hubs in a corridor from offshore Long Island through New York City and the Hudson Valley.

He wants to dedicate a state agency to oversee all infrastructure projects under the roughly $30 billion New York received in the federal infrastructure act. He has called for the state Department of Transportation to swiftly spend billions of those dollars on needed highway and bridge repair. He also wants to see major repairs to Penn Station. Suozzi supports the expansion of Community Development Corporations, to steer public and private investment in upstate communities.

He's also proposed using federal funds to develop a high-speed rail system throughout the state.

Gun Violence and Crime
Suozzi's policing plan, which tops his platform, is divided into interventions (changing bail and discovery laws to give more leeway to judges and prosecutors, and more funding for the NYPD's gun suppression units) and preventions ("universal community policing," social services and education investments, expanding Kendra's Law, and pairing social workers with parole officers).

Like Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Suozzi backs a multi-state commission to target gun trafficking, fund gun-buybacks, strengthen the Red Flag Law, and push for federal gun control legislation. At the same time he has repeatedly criticized Hochul for receiving endorsements from the National Rifle Association in the past (an association she has sought to distance herself from citing her evolving stances on gun control).

“She used to be on the far right and now she's on the far left. I don't know what she stands for,” he said at a primary debate that Hochul skipped earlier this month.

On policing and more Suozzi often sounds a lot like Mayor Adams, whom he supported from early in last year’s mayoral race. Adams asked Suozzi to become a deputy mayor, but Suozzi turned him down, leaving his congressional seat for the run at governor. It’s his second gubernatorial bid after losing the 2006 primary to Eliot Spitzer. Given Hochul is the sitting governor, Suozzi told Gotham Gazette that the best he could hope for was that Adams would not make an endorsement in the gubernatorial primary, but that didn’t happen as the mayor backed Hochul leading up to the vote.

Suozzi still employs Adams’ “intervention and prevention” model as well as other sayings.

He also frequently employs a refrain from the new mayor and a parade of recent NYPD commissioners, that the state should implement "precision policing models," which would use "a systematic, proactive approach using all available data, statistics, and information to prevent crime before it happens," according to his website. He has given nods to the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network and Adams' "neighborhood safety teams," which replaced the notorious anti-crime units targeting guns that then Mayor Bill de Blasio shuttered in 2020.

Suozzi wants to increase the use of ShotSpotter, Inc. products, which detect the sound of gunfire, and perhaps other policing tech. On his campaign website, he promises to "employ state-of-the-art technology to find street criminals with illegal handguns."

Education
Suozzi pledges more state aid for education and looser restrictions on local education funding. He supports specialized high schools in New York City and wants to keep and expand gifted and talented programs, something Adams announced earlier this year. In public appearances, Suozzi has called for maintaining the statewide cap on charter schools while lifting the New York City sub-cap, which has been hit.

Suozzi’s "No Wrong Door" plan, modeled after work he did in Nassau, would place service providers in school buildings to identify students in need and make it easier for teachers to make referrals to social workers.

He has talked about increasing funding for SUNY and CUNY and expanding career placement programs. He wants to see more job training and workforce development programs across the state.

Housing
Suozzi has released few details about his purported plan to build affordable housing. His campaign website calls for an unspecified "billions" on affordable housing production and "transit-oriented development," while promising, if elected, to craft a comprehensive housing plan.

He opposed Hochul's unsuccessful bid to legalize so-called "accessory dwelling units" while supporting commercial-to-residential conversions of vacant hotels and office buildings with affordable set-asides. He supports a tax incentive and abatement for developers of affordable housing that would replace the 421-a program that expired this year. He also wants to expand the New York State Homes and Community Renewal program.

Government Ethics
In response to the $850 million stadium deal with the Buffalo Bills that Hochul pushed through the state budget in the final weeks of negotiation, Suozzi called for a more public process around major spending. Any expenditure over $10 million that was not included in the executive or one-house budget proposals should trigger a public hearing, he says.

He embraces lower legal contribution limits to campaign accounts and a ban on corporate donations to state offices (though he is currently taking that money). He also believes elected officials should not be allowed to include their name or likeness on official mass communications within 90 days of an election (Hochul's name figures prominently on a property tax rebate check sent to homeowners a week before primary polls close). Like virtually everyone in Albany, he criticized the state's dysfunctional ethics watchdog, JCOPE, which Hochul and the Legislature are replacing this year with a new body.

He came out in opposition to term limits for state officials, when asked recently on the debate stage. Hochul said she supports two-term limits for statewide officials and Williams the same, while arguing that legislators should also have term limits but more time in office than statewide officials.

[LISTEN: Max Politics Podcast: Tom Suozzi on His Campaign for Governor]

Rob Astorino, Harry Wilson, Lee Zeldin, and Andrew Giuliani (l-r)

With under a week until primary day, June 28, and early voting underway, Long Island Rep. Lee Zeldin by most measures appears to be the frontrunner for the Republican nomination for New York Governor in this year’s election.

But some experts suggest that the race remains open and hard to predict.

Andrew Giuliani, a former Trump aide, lays claim to certain advantages with the GOP primary electorate, including his association with the former president and name recognition as the son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. While the other two candidates in the running — businessman Harry Wilson and former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino — also have strengths that make them hard to count out.

“Lee Zeldin is the unequivocal frontrunner,” said Chapin Fay, a Republican consultant. “He’s got virtually the entire state Republican Party infrastructure working on his behalf, and regardless of polling and advertising, that is a massive advantage that will be difficult for the others to overcome.”

And Zeldin's status as the perceived frontrunner got a boost Wednesday when former Vice President Mike Pence endorsed him.

To win the four-way primary, one candidate will need to perform especially well among upstate voters – who are likely to cast between 60-62% of the Republican primary vote, according to Gyory’s analysis — while attracting some support downstate, in both New York City and its suburbs.

The winner will then face the general election nominees of the Democratic and other parties while likely also appearing on the Conservative Party ballot line in New York’s fusion voting system. 

“My sense is this race hasn't gelled yet,” said Bruce Gyory, a political scientist, Democratic strategist, and senior advisor at the law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP who closely studies polling, voting trends, and the demographics of the electorate. “I see it as wide open.”

Polling
Zeldin is leading the race by double digits in the two most recent polls seen publicly, conducted by Emerson College and his campaign pollster, McLaughlin & Associates. He benefits from strong fundraising relative to the rest of the primary field other than Wilson, who is largely self-funding his campaign, and Zeldin has the longest list of endorsements by far.

“Since getting into this race over a year ago, Congressman and Army veteran Lee Zeldin has amassed support from New Yorkers from all walks of life, including thousands of volunteers, and tens of thousands of grassroots donors,” said Katie Vincentez, Zeldin’s spokesperson, in an email to Gotham Gazette. “Lee Zeldin is going to win this race, because we need him to win this race, and save our state.”

Some polling from May and June suggests that Giuliani could be a force in the race. He is the most well-known candidate among New York Republicans, thanks in large part to his father, the former two-term mayor of New York City turned Trump attorney working to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Andrew Giuliani is viewed favorably by Republicans by a margin of 50-28%, compared to 35-21% for Zeldin, according to a Siena College poll released last week (which only tracked favorability and did not do a ‘horse race’ poll), with many more respondents saying they didn’t know enough about Zeldin to have an opinion of him. That difference is larger than it was in mid-April, showing Giuliani's popularity climbing while Zeldin’s remained stagnant. 

“Our mission throughout the campaign has been to connect with as many voters as possible on a grassroots level, which has translated to high favorability in the polls for about a year now,” said Maria Sliwa, Giuliani’s campaign spokesperson, in an email to Gotham Gazette. Struggling to raise money, Giuliani has been running his campaign on a shoestring budget, but traversing the state with his famous father and appearing at a wide variety of events.

Gyory said that the favorability polling shows Giuliani’s name advantage over Zeldin, who is less known among voters despite leading him in fundraising and endorsements. “In the absence of others being known, people could vote for the name,” Gyory said.

“His last name and likeability as a candidate make him a wildcard in this race,” echoed Fay of Giuliani, though he maintained Zeldin as the frontrunner. 

Fay added that persistent attacks on Zeldin from both Wilson and Astorino may also help Giuliani, who largely avoided either being attacked or attacking others when the four debated on television for the first time last week (which Giuliani attended virtually after failing to meet CBS’ vaccine requirement to be in the studio). The volume of attacks on Zeldin certainly made it appear that Wilson and Astorino consider the congressman the frontrunner. In the second televised debate, Monday on Spectrum News, Giuliani went after Zeldin for having called Donald Trump’s 2016 criticism of a judge based on the judge’s Mexican heritage racist.

Zeldin and Giuliani exchanged harsh words at debates on Monday and Tuesday nights, indicative of a competitive race heading into its final days.

The former Trump aide also led Zeldin 35%-25% in a late-May survey conducted by John Zogby Strategies and funded by Unite NY, a new initiative backing Wilson and Astorino. The poll, which was conducted with a sample of 408 likely voters and is an outlier given Zeldin’s strength in other polls, found Astorino with 17% of the vote and Wilson with 12%, while 17% of voters said that they were undecided.

Giuliani trailed Zeldin in the McLaughlin and Emerson polls, however, tying in second with Astorino and then placing fourth (last), respectively. 

Zeldin’s campaigns dismissed the Zogby poll when asked for comment. “The Zogby poll is a fake, wildly inaccurate poll paid for by an entity that has been desperately trying to take down Lee Zeldin at any cost,” said Vincentez.

While Unite NY, which funded the poll, has endorsed Astorino and Wilson, its poll showed them behind the other two candidates. But Gyrory said he found the Zogby poll to be the most reliable of the surveys available, though he maintained that they were all subject to error. 

The Emerson poll, which was conducted with a sample of 500 “very likely voters” found Zeldin with 34% of the vote, Giuliani 13%, Astorino 16%, and Wilson 15%. When undecided voters – which accounted for 22% of the respondents – were asked who they were leaning towards, Zeldin’s share of the vote increased to 40%, Astorino’s to 23%, Wilson’s to 20%, and Giuliani’s to 17%. 

In the most recent McLaughlin poll from Zeldin’s campaign, released Tuesday, June 21, Zeldin had 38% of the vote, Giuliani 17%, Astorino 17%, and Wilson 16%, while 12% of voters said they were undecided. The poll’s results are similar to its findings in late May, though they show Zeldin dropping three points and Wilson gaining three points. 

Gyory cautioned against the findings of Zeldin’s internal pollster, but noted that while they may reflect a bias toward Zeldin, it is in McLaughlin’s interest to correctly predict the race. “Just because McLaughlin is Zeldin's pollster doesn't mean his polling is wrong, but it also doesn't mean it's right,” he said.

Astorino has polled evenly throughout May and June, averaging 17.5% of the vote across the Emerson, Mclaughlin, and Zogby surveys. When asked to comment on Astorino’s trailing position in the surveys, his campaign dismissed the data, specifically targeting the bias of internal pollsters like Mclaughlin.

"Internal campaign polls that have been leaked so far have been largely nonsense; they're not so thinly veiled PR releases masquerading as genuine surveys,” said William F. B. O’Reilly, Astorino’s campaign spokesperson. “What's happening on the ground is far more telling, and we like what we're hearing."  

Wilson has climbed some in the polls of May and June, which may reflect his campaign’s sharp increase in spending in the last weeks of the race – he has pledged to spend $12 million of his own money ahead of the vote. Between the Emerson Polls conducted in early May and June, he climbed from 8% to 15%. 

Gyory agreed that Wilson’s spending could push a breakthrough. “The fact that his poll numbers haven't really risen yet doesn't mean they're not,” he said, despite maintaining that the polls  are imperfect indicators of the race. “I haven't seen where he's made a breakthrough, but I can't dismiss it.”

Wilson’s campaign said that as primaries tend to shape up in their last weeks, it is optimistic. “All Republican primaries nationwide are breaking late as voters tune in, so we are focused on the dynamics over the final 2-3 weeks,” said Alex Wilkes, Wilson’s campaign spokesperson. “With Harry's momentum, massive and growing financial advantage and the growing realization he is the only candidate running with the skills and the guts to truly fix Albany – not just manage the decline -– the late breaking voters will disproportionately support Harry and his Turnaround Plan for New York.”

Experts added that while polling can be a helpful way to gauge the race, it is often subject to error. Gyory said that he is skeptical about polling based largely on a sample of “very likely voters” weighted based on expected turnout demographics. “That highly subjective criteria for creating a sample is not in my mind empirically reliable,” he said. “To be charitable, it is interesting but not dispositive.”

Gyory said that he trusts Zogby’s polling the most but believes that none of the surveys are conclusive, adding that the broad inconsistencies among them will eventually be reexamined. “Somebody will have egg on their face,” he said.

Political consultant Jonathan Greenspun cautioned against relying too heavily on pollsters' often dizzying findings, emphasizing how challenging it can be to predict voter turnout among Republican voters. “Pollsters can attest to how difficult it is to predict what the Trump base is thinking and how many will actually turn out,” he said, noting their failure to accurately predict and explain the results of Presidential and Statewide elections in 2020. 

Fundraising
Zeldin has led fundraising in the race – aside from Wilson’s self-funding. Zeldin has raised about $10 million and transferred another $1.2 million from his congressional campaign account), and has spent about $9.2 million, leaving him with $2 million in cash on hand as of June 22. 

Astorino and Giuliani trail the other candidates in fundraising and spending.

Wilson, a multi-millionaire who is CEO of the advisory firm MAEVA group – previously serving as CEO at Genesis HealthCare and partner at hedge fund Silver Point Capital, among other business roles – has had the most money to spend among the Republican candidates, due to his decision to self-fund a large portion of his campaign.

Wilson has raised about $2.1 million in total contributions and also loaned his campaign almost $11 million, allowing him to spend more than $11.1 million in total as of June 22. He had just over $2 million in cash on hand as of the latest filing. He previously pledged $12 million of his own money earlier this year when he jumped into the race late.

“Harry has a massive advantage in primary election cash (over 5 to 1) to bring this message to all primary voters at the time most are beginning to focus on the race,” Vincentez told Gotham Gazette. “As a result, we remain confident we will win upstate voters comfortably and win enough support in the NYC market to prevail statewide.”

The majority of Zeldin’s ad spending has been downstate. His campaign told Gotham Gazette that as of early June it had spent nearly $5 million on television and radio advertisements since February.

Astorino, who was the 2014 Republican nominee for Governor, could still attract support on his record as a veteran politician with executive experience and connection to the suburbs, Gyory said, despite falling behind Wilson and Zeldin in spending and fundraising. He has raised about $3.4 million and transferred another $811,000 from a previous campaign account. He has spent about $3.3 million and has about $747,000 in cash on hand as of June 22. 

Giuliani has the least money of the candidates but has what it usually buys: popularity. “He’ll need less money to win,” said Fay.

Giuliani raised just over $922,000 in total since entering the race and has spent about $570,000. He had about $320,000 in the bank as of the latest filing. “NY for Giuliani is a grassroots movement, not the product of a backroom deal or political cronyism,” Giuliani said in a statement to Gotham Gazette. “The red wave we’ve all been hearing about consists of everyday people who are tired of being mandated, taxed, and regulated — or seeing their children indoctrinated. I’m one of them, and that’s why I’m leading in the polls.”

Endorsements
Zeldin has been designated as the choice of both the Republican and Conservative state parties, boasting a wide range of endorsements, including former VP Pence, many elected officials and The New York Post editorial board. The other candidates have few endorsements or institutional support.

Zeldin has also received support from several labor unions, especially in law enforcement, among others.

"Lee Zeldin is the clear frontrunner because he has proven he has what it takes to win,” said New York Republican Party Chair Nick Langworthy, who has endorsed Zeldin, in a statement to Gotham Gazette about the state of the race. “He has won the support of more than 90% of Republican and Conservative leaders in every corner of this state and has raised the most money from grassroots supporters of any candidate in 20 years. I am confident that he will not only deliver a resounding victory in the primary but that he will be elected to serve as our next governor to save New York State." 

Harry Wilson notably has the backing of the New York Daily News editorial board and good government group Citizens Union, which called Wilson ​​”an outsider who wants to clean up Albany” with “a proven track record as a turnaround specialist, something our state surely needs.”

Giuliani has the support of his father, Rudy Giuliani, as well as the Whitestone Republican Club, the largest party organization in Queens.

But Gyory noted that while Zeldin’s endorsements from party officials across the state is an advantage, he may struggle to translate that support into votes. “There are not a whole lot of Republican primaries year in and year out,” he said. “I just don't think these county leaders who got behind him very early have much experience in turning out the vote.” 

There is still time left for an endorsement from former President Donald Trump that could shift the race. The prevailing belief is that Trump will stay out of the primary to avoid damaging a relationship with either Zeldin or the Giulianis, but some believe that he could enter the race late because Republican voters are more likely to vote in person on primary day than in early or absentee voting.

“A last-minute Trump endorsement will move mountains for the candidate who receives it,” said Greenspun.

Zeldin, Giuliani, and Astorino all have ties to the former president, though Astorino has distanced himself from him by recognizing President Joe Biden and condemning the Capitol riots of January 6, 2021, and saying at the first televised debate that Trump bore some responsibility for what happened that day.

“The GOP primary for Governor will serve as a bellwether to see if the party of ‘MAGA’ is alive in New York,” said Greenspun, himself a former Republican. 

Trumpism is still the dominant force among New York Republicans, and not necessarily choosing the candidate with the best chance to win a general election in Democrat-heavy New York. If the nomination goes to Giuliani or Zeldin, who have both aligned themselves with the former president and further Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, it will signal that the former President’s influence on the party remains robust.

A win by Wilson — who worked with the Obama Administration and is the only candidate in the race who supports abortion rights and readily admits Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election – would show that it is ebbing. 

Gyory notes, however, that while far-right policies may be popular among primary voters, they are hard sells in statewide elections where Republicans have to win over independents and even Democrats. “I don't see a Republican candidate out there, with the possible exception of Harry Wilson, who shows any potential to be able to unite both the Republican bases and independent voters,” he said. 

But as voters become increasingly concerned about high rates of violent crime, the Republican candidates' law and order-focused campaigns are in a better position to win statewide than in past election years. “There's palpable anger among the entire electorate right now,” Greenspun said. “As we head into the November elections, the Democrats are likely to see one of the closest margins for Governor in over a decade.”

Jumaane Williams (photo: WIlliam Alatriste/City Council)

June 22, 2022 - Max Politics Podcast: Jumaane Williams' Closing Argument in Democratic Primary for Governor

Jumaane Williams, the New York City Public Advocate and a Democratic candidate for Governor in this year's election, joined the show to discuss the state of the race and his campaign with just a few days before primary day, some of his major proposals, make his closing argument to primary voters, and more.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through the embedded audio below or download the episode wherever you get your podcasts at Max Politics.

New York City (photo: Governor's Office)

New Yorkers are voting this month in the Democratic and Republican primaries for Governor as the state grapples with an affordable housing crisis that has hit downstate regions home to some two-thirds of its population the hardest. The issue has been far more elevated among the three Democratic candidates to lead the state for the next four years, with the four Republican candidates largely ignoring the topic. That trend changed somewhat when Gotham Gazette asked the Republican campaigns about the issue.

Candidates on both sides of the aisle do have proposals for addressing the state’s affordable housing crisis, including to build more homes and incentivize development, ensure affordability, and revamp crumbling public housing.

Democrats Jumaane Williams and Tom Suozzi issued housing plans on their campaign websites months ago, and Williams has made it among the top three focus issues of his campaign. Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul is running in part on implementing the five-year housing plan that she passed in this year’s state budget.

Among Republicans, none of the four candidates has issued a housing plan publicly, but upon inquiry, Rob Astorino and Harry Wilson provided Gotham Gazette with their ideas, while Lee Zeldin and Andrew Giuliani ignored multiple requests to do so. The four GOP candidates have been campaigning largely on crime and taxes.

Population growth in New York City and its suburbs has continued to outpace residential development over the past decade – squeezing renters, keeping vacancy rates at emergency levels, increasing homelessness, hurting quality of life, and reducing home ownership opportunities. 

Nearly a third of New York City renters spend more than half of their income on rent, according to findings from the 2021 Housing and Vacancy Survey published last month by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. That number jumps to 85% among households with incomes less than $25,000. Meanwhile, there are more than 60,000 homeless people in New York City and the vacancy rate for apartments renting at under $1,500 a month is below 1%. The city builds less housing per capita than nearly any other large city in the country, according to Citizens Budget Commission. 

The root of the state and city housing crisis extends beyond the five boroughs. It has been well-established for decades that Westchester and Long Island have severely limited housing growth, with the regions having some of the lowest housing production rates in the country, issuing far fewer permits for housing than in neighboring New Jersey and Connecticut or the suburban regions of Boston, Washington D.C., and the Bay Area. 

The percentage of households defined as “extremely low income” in New York City is also double that of Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk, according to data compiled by Social Explorer, leading some to pressure those municipalities to build more housing for low-income families. 

In her agenda released early this year, Hochul had attempted to pursue strategies for more housing growth in the suburbs, especially transit-rich areas with easier commutes to New York City, but in the face of intense pushback from elected officials, particularly on Long Island, she abandoned the proposals. It was among the housing setbacks during the governor’s first budget and legislative session in the role, while she was able to notch other accomplishments among her housing priorities.

Kathy Hochul
Hochul, the Democratic governor who took office last August, has touted the $25 billion, five-year housing plan that was funded in the state budget approved in April, with funding focused toward creating and preserving affordable housing, including supportive housing that has social services on-site. Highlights of the plan also include the promise to electrify an additional 50,000 homes and boost the production of affordable rental housing, advance home-ownership, senior housing, and more. 

Hochul recently signed a bill passed by the Legislature that makes it easier to convert underutilized hotel space into permanent homes and another to create the New York City Housing Preservation Trust that is expected to unlock billions in federal funding for NYCHA public housing, home to more than 400,000 New Yorkers and in dire need of tens of billions of dollars in capital repairs.

Hochul was unable to convince the Legislature to approve her proposed changes to the 421-a program that provides large tax breaks for housing development in New York City that includes some affordable housing.

The governor opposed the controversial ‘Good Cause’ eviction bill, which would significantly limit allowable rent increases and evictions in rental housing but did not have enough votes to pass the Legislature. It is among the proposals that Williams and other progressives have criticized Hochul over and it is a policy central to his housing plan.

Hochul proposed two policies to relax restrictions on accessory dwelling units in single-family lots and multi-family homes near commuter rail stations, but both were abandoned in an amended budget plan in February. The revisions, which disappointed many housing advocates, came after suburban lawmakers widely criticized the bills as threats to local zoning authority and single-family home-ownership.

Included in her housing agenda was also replacing the 421-a tax abatement – which has offered property tax breaks on apartment building construction since 1971, but expired last week. Opponents to the program have attacked it as a developer giveaway that costs taxpayers $1.7 billion per year, but real estate industry leaders and some elected officials like Hochul and Mayor Adams warn that affordable housing development will plummet in its absence. Hochul proposed a replacement program, called 485-w, that made some adjustments to the recently-expired program to require more affordable housing in properties receiving the tax break. But the Legislature declined to take it up.

According to her campaign website, Hochul also hopes to improve housing access for renters involved in the criminal justice system or with negative credit history, bolster legal support for those facing eviction, create a disaster recovery and resiliency housing unit, and overall address poverty to prevent homelessness statewide.

Tom Suozzi
Among the opposition to Hochul’s ‘granny flat’ proposal was Rep. Tom Suozzi, who is also seeking the Democratic nomination for Governor this year. Suozzi, who represents the 3rd Congressional District mostly based in Nassau County on Long Island, said it was a state overreach and threat to local single-family zoning.

“There is a better way to expand New York’s affordable housing stock based on local control, not Hochul control,” Suozzi says on his campaign website. 

Suozzi is offering a series of initiatives that he believes would address the housing crisis. If elected, he says he would craft his own multibillion-dollar affordable housing development plan while focusing on repurposing office buildings and hotels, promoting affordable housing tax incentives, building transit-oriented development in suburban localities, and investing in New York State Homes and Community Renewal.

Suozzi offers few details beyond promising, if elected, to craft a plan based on those broad principles.

On Gotham Gazette’s Max’s Politics podcast, Suozzi discussed his plan to enhance downtown suburban areas near train stations to attract young renters and meet some of the significant demand for housing in the New York metropolitan area. He said would create more “cool downtowns,” as he had as Nassau County executive, developing affordable rental apartments, commerce areas, offices, and dining and entertainment options. “Young people are not interested in suburbia,” he said. “We need to make it fun for young people to live there.”

He added that he would keep the rate of return that a developer can make on projects below 10% while incentivizing widespread housing development through tax breaks.

“We need to create a lot more supply of housing, which will help to reduce cost, and we need to actually target affordable housing as well by providing tax incentives to do it,” he said.

Jumaane Williams
New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, another Democratic primary contender in this year’s gubernatorial race, has also been a critic of Hochul’s housing initiatives.

"Governor Hochul’s housing strategy is woefully inadequate to meet the scale of the housing crisis, the depth of need, that decades of corporate giveaways have helped to create,” he said in a March 18 press release announcing his own housing plan.

Williams promises to employ very robust government subsidy programs to cap rent at 30% of household income across the board and to build or preserve 1 million affordable housing units by restructuring how Empire State Development does business, where the city’s housing subsidy funding goes, and leveraging public funds to build more affordable housing.

Williams says that the housing crisis can largely be blamed on profit-motivated private developers' domination of the housing market, which he says has been encouraged by government giveaways and tax breaks like 421-a. He proposes working with nonprofits and qualified housing operators –  rather than revenue-focused companies – to increase development. He is also vehemently supporting the Good Cause eviction bill, which he says would provide renters needed protections.

Other highlights of his housing plan include strengthening tenant associations, expanding cooperative housing models, and introducing a progressive property tax system to offer working and middle-class homeowners rebates.

“Housing is a human right, and housing and homelessness need to be a top priority for anyone who wants to lead our state,” Williams said in the press release.  

Rob Astorino
In response to Gotham Gazette inquiries, Astorino – the former Westchester County Executive who was the Republican nominee for Governor in 2014 – said that as governor he would take several steps to address the state affordable housing crisis.

Astorino said he would strengthen partnerships with the private sector, adding revenue-generating retail establishments to NYCHA and other public housing developments. “One look at a NYCHA building should tell anyone that government-run housing almost always ends up subpar,” Astorino said by email. “We can do better with common sense, hard work, and less politicization around tenants and landlords.” 

He said would also reintroduce “luxury decontrol” for rent-stabilized apartments, a policy that previously allowed landlords to deregulate a unit, or remove it from rent regulation, if the tenants earned over $200,000 per year in the past two consecutive years. He said that the policy would help affordable housing target needier residents, while also increasing cooperation with landlords. “Instead of making landlords the enemy, we need to bring them into the discussion to come up with free-market solutions to expand housing stock all across the state,” he said. 

Astorino said he would also pursue rezoning initiatives to help developers create more housing stock, though he did not clarify how he would do so in his statement to Gotham Gazette. He added that he opposes rezoning single-family-housing areas – a policy that he previously fought against as county executive – but that he is in favor of transit-oriented housing approved by local communities. 

Harry Wilson
Wilson, a businessman who has worked for major investment companies and in the federal government, also proposes increasing the housing supply through an ambitious plan to restructure NYCHA and boost housing development by working with the private sector. 

“One of the primary thrusts of our Turnaround Plan for New York is to make it far more affordable for middle-class and working-class families, and addressing housing costs is an important – but far from the only – part of that effort,” Wilson, a Westchester Republican, said by email.

He said that he blames the crisis on underinvestment in housing stock, restrictive and outdated zoning laws, NYCHA administrative mismanagement, and high construction and planning costs driven by overregulation.

To address the lack of affordable housing supply, Wilson said that it is essential to lower the cost of development over the long-term and subsidize it in the interim through a successor to the 421-a program. “I believe the former is both inherently more sustainable and less subject to political gamesmanship, though in the short-term some level of subsidization for affordable housing (like a successor to 421-a) is unfortunately necessary,” he told Gotham Gazette.

Wilson said that he would also use the governorship to establish a committee responsible for reviewing NYCHA mismanagement, while also developing a plan that would unlock Section 8 funding to help low- and moderate- income families rent in the private market.

He added that legislators need to review zoning laws and conduct a realistic assessment of housing needs across a broad array of price points, helping legislators to increase housing supply and meet the needs of both landlords and renters. 

“While there is a great deal of work to be done, and much progress that must be made, the underlying management principles are straightforward,” Wilson said. “We need to make operating costs more affordable and a closer match to tenant revenues while separately financing the long-neglected capital needs, all consistent with a realistic long-term plan and accountability for each step along the way to ensure NYCHA’s many problems are actually solved and not just talked about.”

Lee Zeldin and Andrew Giuliani
Neither Zeldin’s nor Giuliani’s gubernatorial campaign replied to multiple requests to provide their candidate’s assessment of the state affordable housing crisis and what they propose to do about it if elected Governor.

Zeldin, the Long Island congressman, was among the vocal critics of Hochul’s accessory dwelling unit proposal when the governor released it early this year, but has not offered his own plans for how to increase affordable housing in New York

(l-r) Harry Wilson, Lee Zeldin, Andrew Giuliani, Rob Astorino 

With early voting underway for the June 28 primary election, the four Republican candidates for Governor of New York faced off on Monday for the second debate of the race, hosted by Spectrum News NY1. It was one of their last opportunities to introduce themselves to voters, outline their priorities, and differentiate themselves from the competition. The candidates are expected to meet again at a debate hosted by Newsmax in Rochester on Tuesday. 

At Monday’s debate, there was limited daylight on most issues among the four candidates: U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, businessman Harry Wilson, and Andrew Giuliani, a former White House aide to President Donald Trump. But where there was daylight, it was especially significant given Trump’s apparent hold on the Republican Party and the question of which, if any, Republican nominee could be the first GOP candidate to win statewide in New York in two decades.

The son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Andrew Giuliani appeared at the debate virtually, as he did at the first debate, given he has chosen not to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and studio rules requiring proof of vaccination.

Each of the candidates decried one-party rule in Albany – where Democrats have controlled both houses of the state Legislature since 2019 and the governor’s office since 2011 – and accused Democrats of being soft on crime. They each promised to cut taxes and regulations to spur the economy, and to end covid-related mandates. They all pledged to fire prosecutors who fail or refuse to do their jobs, specifically taking aim at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a progressive who they have inaccurately blamed for rising crime in his jurisdiction. 

Unlike the first debate, the candidates seemed more focused on the audience than each other. But fireworks nonetheless flew, particularly between Zeldin, the state GOP’s preferred candidate, and Wilson. Zeldin has previously attacked Wilson as a “Never Trumper” for refusing to support the one-term president who may be running again in the 2024 election, while Wilson, in turn, has sought to paint Zeldin as a “Cuomo clone” who he says failed in his time as a state senator to stand up to the policies of former Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat. 

During the cross examination round, Zeldin was the target of each of the other candidates’ questions. Giuliani sought to undermine Zeldin’s support for Trump, asking if he had ever called the former president’s statements racist, referring to a comment Zeldin made during the 2016 race when Trump, not yet the frontrunner for the GOP nomination, attacked a judge based on the judge’s Mexican heritage. Zeldin said he was unaware of what Giuliani was referring to and returned fire, saying Giuliani believes he should be governor by birthright. 

Astorino criticized Zeldin for voting for state budgets under Cuomo and for praising the former governor. Zeldin again defended his time in Albany throughout the debate, pointing to an unvarnished record of supporting other Republicans, including in the three gubernatorial races Cuomo won. Wilson posed his question to Astorino, asking him what Zeldin did to oppose Cuomo’s agenda as part of the state Legislature. “Well, that's a good question. The answer is nothing,” Astorino said. 

Zeldin, for his part, challenged Wilson, accusing him of lying in campaign ads about the congressman’s legislative votes, presenting them in misleading fashion as votes to defund law enforcement, which Zeldin unequivocally supports.

A Test on Trump
Loyalty to Trump was a key question for the candidates, with the backdrop of the ongoing congressional hearings on the January 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection. Each of the candidates were asked if they believed the 2020 election was stolen from Trump, as the former president has falsely claimed time and again, including in whipping up the mob that attacked the Capitol in an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election result.

Only Wilson acknowledged President Joe Biden’s victory, while the others raised concerns about election integrity or outright professed the Trump conspiracy theory.

“So I believe Joe Biden was duly elected president of the United States,” Wilson said. “I believe that we Republicans need to move on and focus on addressing the problems that really hurt working families today.”

Giuliani – whose father closely advised Trump during the events leading up to and the day of the insurrection – rejected Biden’s victory. “I believe that Donald Trump on November 3, 2020 was reelected,” he said, making unsubstantiated claims about election fraud and alleging a great, historical crime had been perpetuated on the American people. 

Zeldin pointed to the lawsuits over election law changes and vote counts in Pennsylvania, one of the major battlegrounds of the 2020 election. Pushed to answer the question by debate moderator Errol Louis, Zeldin added, “It's something that we’ll never for sure know the exact consequence of in Pennsylvania, allowing one county to have different rules than another county or not allowing the close observation of the opening of ballots,” he said. Zeldin was among the members of Congress who voted against certifying the 2020 election results on the night of January 6, 2021 after the Capital had been cleared of the rioters, some of whom sought to harm Vice President Mike Pence, House colleagues of Zeldin’s, and others.

“Unfortunately, Joe Biden is our president because we're dealing with this right now,” said Astorino. “I'll tell you what was stolen from us. What was stolen from us was our belief in the election system right now.” Both Zeldin and Astorino expressed support for voter ID laws, which Democrats have long opposed because they tend to suppress votes in communities of color. 

“The problem was every state, every Republican governor, every Republican legislature, every state, all 50 sent in their certified results. So there really wasn't anything that they could do other than accept those results” Astorino added of Congress and Pence. 

Covid Vaccines
On Saturday, the CDC recommended that children between 6 months and 5 years old should receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Except for Wilson, the other candidates did not come out in support of the recommendation. They all opposed adding the covid vaccine to the list of required vaccines for attending school, raising questions about the data on effectiveness even as they supported existing vaccine requirements for diseases like measles and struggled to explain that inconsistency.  

“That's a parental choice that needs to be made by a mom and a dad or a guardian,” Astorino said. “That should not be required by the state of New York.”

“I think it's a fundamentally different disease, and that's why I think it should be treated differently than existing vaccination requirements,” said Wilson, who pointed to the contagiousness (covid can still be contracted by vaccinated individuals) and the relatively quick development of the covid vaccine.

“Leave it up to the parents,” said Zeldin. “I believe in the fundamental right of a parent to control the upbringing of their child, that the government should not infringe upon that right at all.”

Giuliani said he was outright opposed to any mandate. “I am not a biologist, nor am I an epidemiologist,” he noted, but he insisted that he wanted to see more data before recommending that parents give their children the vaccine. “I think we've completely politicized the science when it comes to this at this point,” he said, raising unfounded concerns about the impact that the covid vaccine could have on young girls’ reproductive health.

Both Zeldin and Giuliani said that mask mandates for young children, which have already been lifted, amounted to “child abuse” in their opinion. 

All the candidates said they would lift covid-related mandates on day one, including vaccination requirements for public employees, and have all promised to rehire state employees that have been terminated for refusing vaccines.

Juneteenth and Critical Race Theory
Monday was the celebration of Juneteenth, which marks the end of slavery in the United States. But among Republicans, the teaching of the history of slavery in schools has become a contentious issue.

At the debate, candidates gave vague, somewhat off-topic answers when asked if the history of slavery and racism should be taught in schools, as required by state law. They did, however, each take turns to emphasize that the United States is “the greatest country in the world.” 

Giuliani, for instance, insisted that he wanted an “honest telling” of American history and praised the celebration of Juneteenth. But he also wondered why Columbus Day wasn’t celebrated as a federal holiday as well. “​​When I look at this, and when I look at American history, and I look at our education system, I see a system in New York and in America that's under attack,” he said. 

He also name-checked the New York Times’ 1619 project, which reframed the founding of the United States from when the first slave ship landed here. The project, which Giuliani falsely called “fictionalized,” has been the subject of intense criticism from the right. 

Zeldin implied that teaching students about slavery and racism was divisive. “Kids are getting along just fine until maybe that teacher, that educator, that school district comes in with their agenda and they start pitting students against each other,” he said. “We need to be uniting kids. They should be coming together and we also see it with sex education inside of classrooms and more.”

Wilson was the only candidate to address the question directly. “Certainly we need to understand the legacy of slavery,” he said. “It’s the darkest part of our history and there are so many things that we can learn from that.”

Astorino said that school enrollment has dropped “because they're getting force fed junk at times, including things like white privilege and dividing people by class and by race and ‘you're victims and you're to blame and it's your family's fault.’” 

He also falsely claimed that the 1619 project “was completely debunked.” He continued: “And yet, for some, that was the foundation of America. It was based on slavery. That is completely incorrect. Juneteenth proves that we've moved forward in our country.” 

The candidates gave somewhat unclear answers when asked about a State Board of Regents initiative to teach “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” in schools, which, as debate moderator Susan Arbetter pointed out, has often been wrongly equated with Critical Race Theory, a legal theory taught in college-level courses, graduate and law schools. CRT has become a cudgel for Republican politicians across the country, used as an election talking point to try to convince white parents that their children are being indoctrinated, that parents’ rights are being eroded, and that ‘woke’ school officials have run amok.

Some of the candidates, however, committed the very error that Arbetter pointed out. 

“I would look at ‘Diversity, Equity, Inclusion,’ and I would call it what it is, which is Critical Race Theory 101,” Giuliani said, though he was unable to define CRT or give an example of its teaching when pressed. He also insisted that “equity is a very dangerous concept” and that he was, instead, focused on equality of opportunity. 

“They keep coming up with new names for Critical Race Theory,” said Zeldin, who then criticized Governor Kathy Hochul for signing a proclamation recognizing Indigenous People’s Day on Columbus Day. “I believe that right now the people who are in charge of our Department of Education, the people in charge of our government are going the wrong way with what might sound good with some of these terms on paper,” he said. 

Astorino too conflated the two issues. “[T]hings like CRT, which is seeping everywhere, is obviously when you divide people and tell people you're bad, you're a racist if you don't agree. No, that's not what we should be teaching,” he said. He had first complained that the debate was focused on things that regular people are not concerned about, arguing that people are more concerned with the price of gas than racism in society.

Wilson seemed to tread softly with his response. “I look at it quite differently, Susan, which is that I think we have to celebrate the diversity of America but not go into these labels that don't really mean anything and are loaded terms,” he said. 

Law and Order
Public polling shows that crime is the top issue for voters in 2022 amid yearslong increases, and Republicans have sought to blame the recent rise in violent crime on Democratic policies. In particular, they have said, despite ample evidence to the contrary, that bail reforms passed by the state Legislature in 2019 (and rolled back some last year and this year) are the prime cause. 

The candidates were on shared ground when it came to the issue. They’ve all called for a rollback of the bail reforms and a shift to more judicial discretion for pre-trial detention, pushed back against efforts to “defund” the police, promised to use executive power to remove prosecutors whose policies they don’t like, and for a return to more aggressive policing. They’ve also pushed back against other criminal justice measures passed by Democrats in recent years including reforms to the discovery process, parole, and restrictions on solitary confinement in jails and prisons. 

Zeldin again jumped on the issue to take a swing at Wilson for “donating to the Soros-funded liberal Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg while the rest of us are here talking about how Alvin Bragg should not have been elected to this position in the first place.” 

“Yes, I did give one donation just like I gave money to Mr. Zeldin when he came begging for money as well,” Wilson responded, insisting that he doesn’t agree with Bragg’s policies and would also seek his removal from office. Wilson has said repeatedly he gave Bragg a donation because they went to college together. 

Economy and Inflation
The candidates had broadly similar prescriptions for boosting the state’s economy and for reducing the impact of inflation.

Wilson said he could cut regulations that lead to higher costs for New Yorkers. In total, he said he would cut state spending by $25 billion and put almost $5,000 back in the pockets of state residents by cutting income and property taxes by 20%. 

Astorino said he would phase out school taxes for seniors, eliminate the estate tax, and cut income and corporate taxes. 

Zeldin also wants to cut taxes and reverse the state’s ban on fracking for natural gas, to reduce the cost of energy and spur economic activity.  

Giuliani said he too would restore fracking. He promised to cut three regulations for every new one he signs into law (referencing the similar promise of his old boss, President Trump), cut income and property tax cuts, eliminate property taxes for those above the age of 65 making less than $100,000 a year, and eliminate the state gas tax. 

Abortion
Of the four, Wilson is the only one who supports abortion rights, saying clearly on Monday night, “I am pro-choice.” He did add that the state’s current law “goes too far” and said that he opposes allowing non-doctors to conduct abortions and is against late-term abortions (which rarely occur and only if the mother’s life or health are at risk or if the fetus is not viable).

Zeldin also raised similar concerns. “I am pro-life, but there are people who consider themselves to be pro-choice who are against the current law that allows for late-term partial-birth abortion, people who consider themselves to be pro-choice who are against non-doctors performing abortion, people who consider themselves to be pro-choice who are in favor of parental consent,” he said.

“I've said before I am pro-life, but I look at what we've seen in New York as a loss of morality,” said Giuliani. “When we're talking about lighting up Niagara Falls, lighting up the Empire State Building to celebrate our abortion, it is beyond disgusting.”  

Astorino criticized allowing abortions “going to the moment of birth,” a false claim that has been repeatedly made about the state’s law. He said the state should make it easier to adopt, and called for instituting parental consent and funding pregnancy care centers.

Andrew Gounardes, left, and David Yassky

Following a chaotic redistricting process in New York, an interesting State Senate primary is shaping up in parts of Brooklyn.

State Senator Andrew Goundares, who represents the current 22nd district, and former City Council Member David Yassky are the only two Democratic candidates who have entered the race for the new 26th State Senate District. The district includes some of Gounardes’ current district, notably his home turf of Bay Ridge, as well as the neighborhoods of Dyker Heights, Fort Hamilton, Cobble Hill, Gowanus, Red Hook, and parts of Sunset Park, Park Slope, and South Slope. Some of those areas were part of the City Council district represented by Yassky from 2002 through 2009.

The winner of the August Democratic primary is expected to win the general election easily given the heavy Democratic tilt of the district. Early voting will be August 13 to August 21, and primary day is August 23.

The new 26th State Senate District is part of the redrawn Congressional and Senate district maps mandated by the decennial process using new Census data. The first new boundaries drawn by Democrats in the New York State Legislature were ruled unconstitutional, delaying the previously scheduled primaries for these two sets of races from June to August. State Assembly and statewide primaries remain in June. 

Following the redistricting, State Senator Brian Kavanagh, a Democrat who has represented the current 26th district since 2017, decided to run for reelection in the newly-redrawn 27th district, which is centered in Lower Manhattan, including major parts of his current district. With his Bay Ridge home and political base drawn into the new 26th and no other incumbent there, Gounardes opted for that race.

The close to 320,000 residents of the new district, per 2020 Census data, are 49.9% white, 23.9% Hispanic, 15.3% Asian, and 6% Black, according to Redistricting & You: New York from the CUNY Mapping Service. Voters of these neighborhoods casted their ballots heavily Democratic during the 2020 presidential election, with 81.5% voting for now-President Biden and 18.5% voting for then-President Donald Trump, according to Redistricting & You.

The 2022 Democratic primary between Gounardes and Yassky forces Gounardes to campaign in a lot of new territory, but with the strengths of incumbency, including recent state government accomplishments, while Yassky attempts a comeback after several years out of office, but able to rely on at least some longtime support in his old district.

Andrew Gounardes
State Senator Gounardes has represented the 22nd district serving neighborhoods in Southern Brooklyn since 2019 after he turned a seat from Republican to Democratic in the 2018 election, helping his party flip the State Senate after many years in the minority.

That change meant Democrats controlled all of state government and were able to pass a very long list of pent-up priorities on topics including voting reform, reproductive rights, gun control, climate action, and much more. Democrats in the Legislature have now spent the last four years passing more and more legislation and crafting new state budgets, while also dealing with the pandemic.

As he runs in the new 26th district, Gounardes is touting many of his accomplishments of the last two terms, including legislation and funding efforts he spearheaded on issues like speed cameras in city school zones, workplace sexual harassment protections, support for freelance workers, investments in CUNY, and more.

If reelected to the Senate, Gounardes told Gotham Gazette that his top priorities will be to expand his work on the more than 60 bills he has written and passed in office, including transportation accessibility and reliability, pedestrian safety, workers’ rights and more.

“My approach to this job is really community-based and community first, and so I view my role as elevating the voices of the different communities that I represent, and I will continue to do that,” Gounardes said. “Because I’ve had a lot of on-the-ground experience working with diverse communities, I’m best positioned for the new challenges and new issues, and some of the new neighborhoods that this [current] district did not cover, and I’m eager for that opportunity.”

When asked about his vision for the 26th district, Gounardes said he hopes to push for full accessibility of the subways, noting that the neighborhoods have access to many subway lines. He said the district is heavily affected by traffic violence, which has led him to prioritize pedestrian safety and address other public infrastructure concerns, such as reimagining the crumbling Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Gounardes said much of the district is home to working class New Yorkers and that he is focused on upholding workplace fairness and strengthening protections for immigrants. His campaign outlines the importance of protecting victims of sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace through increasing the statute of limitations from three years to six years, granting fair pay regardless of gender and race, and more. 

Gounardes also has plans to increase the affordability and accessibility of housing, healthcare, childcare and education. He wants to invest funds into CUNY and SUNY and other higher education programs, reform the property tax system and pass legislation regarding the compensation for personal data among Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google and other companies. 

During a recent podcast interview with Gotham Gazette editor Ben Max, Gounardes said he is excited about running in the district where he has spent most of his life, and he believes he has a strong base of support due to his relationships with community activists, political leaders and elected officials in the neighborhoods

“Despite the conservative leanings of my current district, I’ve stayed true to my values,” he said on Gotham Gazette’s Max Politics podcast, when asked about how he may adjust his politics to a more progressive district as he seeks votes there. “I led on issues that I think are incredibly important to deliver for people in the neighborhoods I represent, plus the neighborhoods across the city, dnd I don’t think that’s going to change at all with this new district.”

As he declared for the new district, Gounardes quickly announced a number of endorsements in the primary, including New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who represented Park Slope in the City Council prior to winning citywide last year, City Council Members Justin Brannan and Lincoln Restler, both of whose districts overlap some with the new Senate district, as well as District Leaders Joanne Seminara, Julio Peńa, Douglas Schneider, and Chris McCreight, and others.

Gounardes also has a long list of labor unions and other organizations with him in this year’s election, including 32BJ building service workers, the state nurses association, public employees union DC37, the RWDSU retail workers union, the communications workers, transportation workers, CUNY faculty union, the Working Families Party, the Bay Ridge Democrats, and more.

Gounardes previously worked as an aide to then-City Council Member Vincent Gentile and as Counsel to then-Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, whom Gounardes endorsed in his successful mayoral bid last year and considers a close ally. Among other topics, they worked together recently on the speed camera legislation that passed, allowing the expansion of the school zone program that has proved to enhance street safety.

“We have a thing in my office, that no matter what happens on any given day, if we could end every day knowing that we helped at least one person then we will have done our job,” he said. “And so for me, the joy of being able to be in this position is knowing that we have the ability to affect people’s lives for the better — some ways big and some ways small.”

David Yassky
Yassky said he is running for the new 26th State Senate District to represent some of the same neighborhoods he had previously served as a City Council Member for the 33rd district, which covered neighborhoods in downtown Brooklyn.

“Albany is a mess, just to sum it up in a word,” Yassky told Gotham Gazette in an interview. “I have real concerns about where the city and state are heading. It’s still the greatest place in the world to live, and I am bullish on New York City long-term, but there are real warning signs.”

Yassky has recent state government experience to draw from. Since leaving the City Council at the end of 2009, after losing a bid that year for city comptroller, Yassky became the commissioner of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) as an appointee of then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He later became the dean of Pace University School of Law from 2014 to 2018, and then worked as the Director of State Policy in Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration from 2019 to 2021. He was named to Eric Adams’ mayoral transition team in late 2021.

If elected into the State Senate, Yassky’s top priorities would include housing, transportation, climate, the impact of the pandemic on education, and public safety. “The safety issue is real,” he said. “The state Legislature has not grappled with that, and in some ways, they've exacerbated the problem.”

Yassky said a large part of public safety concerns — on the streets and in the subway — is tied to mental health and the effects of covid isolation over the last two years. He said the state needs to massively increase the number of residential facilities, ranging psychiatric hospitals, crisis stabilization centers, and supportive housing, in order to address the root of many crimes.

Yassky said the 26th district also has opportunities to build more affordable housing by partnering with community-based organizations that have concrete plans. He believes that state legislators have not adequately addressed the concerns of residents who live in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) developments, and said that public housing is in worse shape than when he left City Council. “New York City is housing half a million people as a landlord, and it's the worst landlord in the city,” he said, mentioning wanting to work with tenant leaders and reduce bureaucratic delays.

On transportation, Yassky said the state has a “once in a generation” opportunity to improve the transportation network given the massive federal infrastructure bill passed last year by Congress and President Biden. He pointed to the Brooklyn Queens Expressway and the importance of involving the community in an infrastructure plan before it is unusable.

Yassky added that the bike lanes are not properly laid out for the usage of e-bikes and e-scooters, and said he wants to create a regulatory system that ensures public roadways can be shared safely among electric vehicles, bicycles, and others.

He also said he would be focused on continuing to move the state toward more use of wind and solar energy. Yassky hopes to clean up the Gowanus Canal, similar to how he helped lead the transformation of Newtown Creek in Greenpoint from a dead waterway, he said.

During an Independent Neighborhood Democrats endorsement meeting last month, Yassky said his agenda would also focus on addressing gun violence, the status of gig workers, and the conversion of empty office buildings and hotels into housing.

Yassky pointed to what he said were his top accomplishments in the City Council, including passing inclusionary zoning, tripling the number of jobs in the film and television industry through incentives, changing taxi cabs to hybrid electric vehicles, and converting the city’s garbage collection to a barge and rail system.

“It’s been a while since I’ve knocked on doors and talked to people that I didn’t know about politics and policy, and I love it,” Yassky said of campaigning this year. “I was lucky in the past, and I’m lucky now, to be running in an area where people really care about their neighborhood, they’re engaged, they want to talk about what’s right, and they have different points of view often.”

Before the Legislature’s new maps were thrown out in court and new districts were drawn, Yassky had been campaigning to represent the 23rd State Senate District, with parts of Brooklyn and Staten Island. Then his home base in Downtown Brooklyn was drawn into the new 26th district. After the new district lines were introduced, Yassky lost a prior endorsement from the Independent Neighborhood Democrats to Gounardes.

Prior to his time in the City Council, at TLC, Pace University, and Cuomo’s office, Yassky was a budget analyst for the New York City Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget then chief counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Crime under then-Rep. Charles Schumer, where he helped pass the Brady Bill, which mandates background checks on some firearm purchasers and implemented a five-day waiting period on some gun purchases.

Jumaane Williams, Kathy Hochul, & Tom Suozzi

The three Democratic candidates for governor met at the final debate of the race on Thursday night, among their last opportunities to make an impression with voters before early voting begins on Saturday for the June 28 primary. Governor Kathy Hochul, who is running for her first full term, continues to have significant fundraising and polling advantages over her opponents, U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.

At Thursday’s debate, hosted by NBC New York, Telemundo, and the Albany Times Union, the candidates covered some of the same ground from their previous debate encounter last week, with Hochul spending the hour fending off criticisms from her challengers and promoting her brief but busy record as governor. But the candidates, especially the underdog challengers, appeared to show an additional sense of urgency, likely knowing they needed to cut into Hochul’s standing as voting is set to commence.

Suozzi was particularly dogged in his attacks against the incumbent, with several tense exchanges between the two. While Hochul was often on the back foot and at times struggled to rebut the criticism, Suozzi may have crossed the line into rude and patronizing behavior toward the state’s first female chief executive. While she kept her composure throughout, at one point Hochul sternly told Suozzi to stop interrupting her.

He highlighted her past conservative-leaning positions on guns and undocumented immigrants. And he questioned her commitment to ethics over both her appointment of Brian Benjamin – who was Hochul’s lieutenant governor before resigning in the face of federal corruption charges – and her negotiation of a new stadium deal for the Buffalo Bills, whose concessions contract is held by a company where Hochul’s husband is a top executive. 

Hochul later said that her selection of Benjamin was the biggest mistake of her political career. She, in turn, pointed out Suozzi’s “hypocrisy” as he is currently facing a potential ethics investigation in the House of Representatives over his stock trading portfolio and missed disclosures. 

For his part, Williams repeatedly critiqued Hochul’s leadership and what he called her failure to address perennial issues including gun violence, the lack of affordable housing, and economic stagnation upstate. He pointed often to Hochul’s six years as lieutenant governor under former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who she replaced nine months ago when he resigned in disgrace. “You can't spend six years taking credit for the good things that happened, and then not take accountability for the bad things that happened,” he said at one point in the debate.

The debate covered a broad array of issues including public safety and gun violence, tenant protections, taxes and economic policy, education, climate action, abortion rights, mental health and more. But the candidates had little time to address each issue and consequently offered few solutions or plans to address them. There is little ideological difference between Hochul and Suozzi, both of whom are centrist Democrats with liberal streaks, while Williams sought to again clearly set himself apart as the progressive alternative in the race. 

But policy differences did emerge on several fronts.  

A major piece of legislation that failed to pass in the state Legislature this year was the “good cause eviction” bill, which the governor has not publicly supported. At the debate, she would not say whether she would have signed the bill if it made it to her desk, despite being asked twice by the moderators. Williams on the other hand has been an ardent advocate for the bill, which would strictly limit rent increases and evictions that landlords can pursue, and has sought to go further on tenant protections.

Suozzi is also not a supporter of the bill and, when asked about solutions for lowering rent burdens, simply stressed the need to build more affordable housing and invest more resources in public housing. 

The three candidates were particularly divided on tax policy. Asked about lowering one possible state tax, they each had a different answer. 

Hochul touted the recent temporary suspension of the state gas tax and expedited middle-class tax cuts that were passed in previous years. She did not say what tax she would cut but rather insisted, “We're not raising taxes on New Yorkers because they have suffered enough.” 

Williams said he wants to “rightsize” the state’s inequitable property tax system and raise taxes on billionaire New Yorkers to fund everything from housing to education. “That ‘not raising tax’ line is a Republican line that's meant to protect rich donors at the expense of people who need assistance,” he said, referring to Hochul’s answer. 

Suozzi promised to cut state income taxes by 10% and reduce property taxes, particularly for senior citizens. “Real people are suffering because we have the highest taxes in America,” he said. 

The current governor’s race is taking place as the specter of Cuomo continues to haunt the state’s political scene. The former governor has continued to plot a political comeback despite being brought down amid multiple scandals that included sexual harassment and assault allegations, a cover-up of covid-related deaths among nursing home residents and making millions of dollars on a covid leadership memoir that appeared to rely on prohibited use of state resources in its production.  

At the debate, Suozzi was the only candidate who said he would nonetheless accept an endorsement from Cuomo, when the moderators posed the question. “I think that he's still very popular among a lot of people in New York State,” Suozzi said. “And while he has a lot of baggage, along with what he's done, he's accomplished a great deal in the state of New York.” 

Williams and Hochul both said no. 

As the state braces itself for a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could overturn restrictions on the concealed carry of firearms in New York, officials have expressed concern that the current gun violence crisis could be further exacerbated. But at the debate, the candidates gave few solutions for that possibility. 

Hochul said her administration will be ready to act as soon as the decision comes down from the court, though they are in a wait-and-see pattern to determine their approach. “I can't say right now what the approach will be because I have to see what basis they use to strike down the law and then we'll figure out what the answer is and make sure that our law can be legally sustainable,” she said, adding that she’s been in conversation on the issue with the legislative leaders.

Williams and Suozzi took the opportunity to highlight Hochul’s past as a favored candidate of the National Rifle Association. “Unfortunately, we're ten years behind on this because we had a governor in Congress who's doing the work of the NRA,” Williams said, insisting that the state should have spent $1 billion on gun violence prevention programs in the state budget adopted in April. 

Hochul has previously explained that her positions have since evolved, which Suozzi has repeatedly pounced on. “She says she's evolved. She didn't evolve after Columbine. She didn't evolve after Virginia Tech,” Suozzi said. “The only thing that’s evolved are the governor's political ambitions.” 

The debate around public safety has been particularly fierce this year when it comes to the New York City subway system. Early this year, Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams (who endorsed Hochul this week, she noted) partnered on a plan to use a combination of state outreach workers and NYPD officers to remove homeless people from the system, particularly to provide assistance and treatment to those with severe mental illness. 

Asked about the success of the program, Hochul implied that it was too early to judge. “We're just getting started,” she said. “We've been in this office just a matter of nine months. It is a long-standing problem. But at least we're recognizing it and we're not ignoring it and hoping it goes away.”

Williams again pointed to Hochul’s six-plus years in state leadership. “The thing that we need is a governor who has been working on these issues like I have in the city to build a structure of continuum of care for mental health,” he said. 

Suozzi called for an expansion of Kendra’s Law, which allows court-ordered outpatient treatment for people who might be a danger to themselves or others and was indeed expanded by Hochul and the Legislature in the state budget deal. “This is the number one issue we face in the state and the governor has not treated it like the number one issue that it is,” he said of public safety overall. 

There were a few areas of agreement among the three. They were all on the same page when it came to increasing wages for home health-care aides as the state faces a major shortage of those workers. They all spoke of greater resiliency measures that would protect New Yorkers who live in flood zones. And all three supported legislation that would mandate that schools teach Asian American and Pacific Islander history. 

There was no consensus, however, on the question of whether elementary school curriculums should include required lessons on gender identity and sexual orientation. 

Williams supported the measure. “We just have to teach children at the level that they can understand and not above that,” he said, noting that the conversation has to have nuance.

“I wouldn't teach children under fifth grade about sexual orientation or about genitalia or about sexuality,” said Suozzi. “I think that that's up to parents to do that.”

“Everything has to be age appropriate and parents involved,” said Hochul, who didn’t take a clear stance but said she would work with legislators, parents, and local school boards.

At times, Williams found himself on one side of an issue with Hochul and Suozzi on the other. Asked about the state’s Excluded Workers Fund, which provides relief to undocumented New Yorkers who couldn’t receive federal pandemic relief, he was the only one to say he would replenish the fund and increase its total funding. 

Williams was also the only one to say that state funding should be used for travel and lodging for people coming to New York to seek abortions. The governor recently provided $35 million to bolster reproductive clinics in the state. But, she said at the debate, “I don't support taxpayer dollars being used to pay for transportation but I'm working with the advocacy groups, the not-for-profits, corporations to help fill these gaps and let people know that this is a safe harbor for people.” Suozzi expressed support for safe and accessible abortion care, but opposed the use of state funds for travel and lodging for abortion care. 

Faced with a mental health crisis among young people across the state, the candidates did not offer concrete plans. Hochul touted $10 billion funding in the state budget to recruit health care workers, particularly mental health workers. Williams insisted that schools need more funding for mental health services for students. 

Suozzi faulted both for emphasizing more spending. “We don't have more money,” he said, again referencing the state’s high taxes but not acknowledging how flush state coffers are due to tax revenue and federal pandemic aid. He said current funds should be reallocated towards youth mental health.

The candidates presented differing visions for the struggling upstate economy. Williams has long criticized Cuomo, and by extension Hochul, for repeatedly sinking billions of dollars into large-scale projects in upstate communities with meager results. He insisted that the funds should go to small businesses instead to spur local growth. 

Suozzi said he would cut taxes and regulations to incentivize entrepreneurship. 

Hochul said the upstate economy has been “neglected for decades.” “It never received the attention it needed…It's an important part of our ecosystem,” said the Buffalo native. She offered no direct solutions but indicated that she would be a strong cheerleader for upstate. “It's about telling employers, ‘you come to a place like upstate New York, you'll have low cost power, the most highly-educated, skilled workforce, the hardest working people,’” she said. 

Even as the state continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, another threat is looming in the form of Monkeypox, which has begun to spread in New York. The candidates were each asked how they would treat it differently compared to covid. 

“It's all about being ready, treating it like a military operation,” Hochul said, pointing to the steps she’s already taken to respond to spikes of the coronavirus. 

Williams pointed to the chaotic decisions of the Cuomo administration in the early days of the pandemic, and said he would do things differently. “We'd have clear, concise information. We’d have resources to the people who are hardest hit,” he said.

Suozzi said he would have a “comprehensive plan” in place, but gave no other details.

(l-r:) Ana Maria Archila, Antonio Delgado, and Diana Reyna

The three Democratic candidates for New York lieutenant governor met on the debate stage Wednesday night for the first and only time before voters go to the polls this month.

In the debate, broadcast by Spectrum News NY1, newly-appointed Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado faced off against activist and nonprofit leader Ana María Archila and Diana Reyna, a former City Council Member and Deputy Brooklyn Borough President. The candidates tried to distinguish themselves on their track records, views of the role of lieutenant governor, and stances on issues including government corruption, crypto-mining and the environment, gun control, abortion, housing, and more.

Candidates for Lieutenant Governor and Governor run in separate party primaries, with the winners then forming a ticket for the general election, where the nominees of each party appear together on the ballot.

Governor Kathy Hochul's running-mate, Delgado was recently sworn in after Hochul's first  lieutenant governor, Brian Benjamin, was indicted on federal corruption charges related to his fundraising as a State Senator and resigned while declaring his innocence. Democratic lawmakers changed the law to allow Delgado, then a member of Congress representing parts of upstate, to bump Benjamin from the ballot at the behest of Hochul earlier this year.

Archila is running with gubernatorial candidate Jumaane Williams, the New York City Public Advocate and a fellow progressive. Reyna is running with U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi of Long Island, and the pair are on many issues running to the right of Hochul and Delgado while Archila and Williams run to their left.

Though he joined the race quite late, Delgado has significant advantages as Hochul's running mate, a sitting office-holder, and his sizable war chest he was able to transfer over from his congressional campaign account as well as the financial support he is getting from Hochul, who has raised tens of millions of dollars more than her opponents. Delgado has quickly picked up endorsements in the race alongside Hochul, including from a growing list of elected officials and labor unions.

Williams and Archila are supported by much of the New York left, including the Working Families Party and many elected officials. They have raised limited funds, however.

With two of the last three lieutenant governors becoming governor following a resignation, including Hochul, moderators Errol Louis and Susan Arbetter pressed the candidates on how prepared they are for the top position, especially given that none of the three have significant state government experience.

Asked about overcoming that gap, their understanding of the levers of power in Albany, the budget process, and their willingness to stand up to the governor, the three candidates talked about their work in government or advocating for change from the outside.

"I bring to bear a certain level of experience, a certain record," Delgado said, referring to legislation he's passed in Congress under Presidents Trump and Biden, as well as billions in dollars of funding he said he helped secure for New York. "And when I come into this position, the expectation is that I'm an active partner."

Archila said she was willing to publicly oppose the governor on issues they disagreed on and insert herself into budget negotiations. "The lieutenant governor should be a forceful advocate for people each and every single day," she said. "Instead of standing quietly in the background, instead of just cutting ribbons."

Reyna touted her nearly two decades in city government. "I served as a budget negotiating member in the City Council for 12 years. I'm the only lieutenant governor candidate who has had executive government experience," she added, referring to her time as deputy to then-Borough President Eric Adams.

The candidates were asked about avoiding conflicts of interest with campaign donors.

Delgado said he supported national public campaign financing in Congress and wanted to place more regulations on lobbyists.

"We need to make sure that the revolving door of state legislators becoming lobbyists is chilled and frozen," Delgado said.

Asked, given the significant financial support he’s received from people involved in the cryptocurrency industry, whether he backs a moratorium on reopening fossil fuel plants to provide the energy needed for crypto-mining, Delgado said the bill that passed both houses of the Legislature "should be seriously considered."

State legislators passed the moratorium at the end of the legislative session and Hochul has said she will not make a decision on signing it until after the election. When pressed, Delgado denied any relationship to a crypto-currency billionaire who has funded a Super PAC that has generously supported his campaign. "I have no connection to this individual. None," he said.

Pressed again on whether Hochul should sign the bill, Delgado demurred: "I think she should give it some serious thought."

"This is a perfect example of the governor being an obstacle to progress and the lieutenant governor saying nothing," Archila said, articulating a main thrust of her campaign: that if elected she promises to be an outspoken lieutenant governor, not simply an extension of the governor’s office. Though she did not name Hochul, at one point Archila said that unlike the then-lieutenant governor, she would not have remained silent when then-Governor Cuomo was making deadly decisions about COVID-19 and nursing homes.

"When Governor Cuomo sent people who had COVID-19 back into nursing homes, that decision cost the lives of thousands and thousands of New Yorkers. I would have never stayed quiet," she said.

Archila said Hochul should sign the crypto-mining-related moratorium bill immediately, while Reyna said she wanted to hear more from potentially-impacted communities and that she was wary of hurting economic growth. Archila responded by saying she had already done so, and those at most risk of the climate impacts need to be protected. Archila was also the only candidate to support a ban on new commercial and residential gas hook-ups in upstate New York (the Legislature is considering a bill for a statewide ban starting in several years, but it did not pass before the end of the legislative session). 

On the attack much of the debate, Archila also criticized both Delgado and Reyna for taking money from wealthy donors. "Actions speak louder than words," she said. "Both of my opponents have accepted money from industries that dominate the debate in Albany. Antonio, you don't know the person who has spent a million dollars on behalf of your campaign? You should tell him to stop."

Reyna responded by saying that Archila also had special interests supporting her, citing elected officials and the Working Families Party.

On government ethics, Reyna said she wanted to see more staffing go to JCOPE, the state's recently-replaced ethics watchdog, for legislators to be full-time positions, and to institute a temporary ban on lobbying after leaving office.

Both Archila and Delgado said they would call for a special legislative session to enact gun control measures if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down the state's concealed carry laws. They also said gun rules should be the same in urban and rural parts of the state. Archila called for $1 billion for community violence prevention programming, part of her public safety platform with Williams.

"Raising the age from 18 to 21 [to purchase a semi-automatic gun], would actually not have stopped many of the firings of assault weapons that have happened in New York and other parts of the country," Archila said of one gun control law Hochul recently signed. "I would urge the Legislature to go back to Albany and have the strongest legislation possible to prevent handguns from being carried in subways and public transportation in public places," she said of the potential Supreme Court ruling.

Delgado stressed a tailored response to the possible concealed carry ruling, which Hochul has previewed in broad terms. "I know the governor is already working with the legal team to figure out how, depending on the dictum and the holding, which is gonna be very important to the analysis here, how we can sharply respond to this ruling," he said.

Reyna said she is not focused on the Supreme Court case at this time and that the discussion should be on illegal gun trafficking from states with looser gun laws rather than the potential court decision. "I will have to further discuss with the Legislature, if elected lieutenant governor, and with the governor to understand exactly what implications that will have in the state of New York."

"This ruling is not what I'm focused on," Reyna said. "I'm focused on the violence that's taking place here, the iron pipeline issues that we have to resolve."

The candidates held differing positions on recent changes to the state bail law, with Archila expressing disappointment in amendments over the last two years that watered down sweeping reforms first passed in 2019. Reyna said she wanted to "fix bail reform" to see fewer people "languish in jail" without elaborating. "But what is also true is that the issues that we see here today, are is a revolving door of criminals, the opportunities to see lawlessness in the streets," she added and said more should be done to improve the discovery process.

Delgado said he supported giving judges more discretion in setting bail, which the recent changes did to some extent, but not as much as is favored by Hochul, Suozzi, and Mayor Eric Adams, who endorsed Hochul on Wednesday morning despite a close alliance with Suozzi and longtime working relationship with Williams, a fellow Brooklyn Democrat.

"I think what happened when the bail reform bill was passed, and I flagged this, back in 2019, when you strip away the discretion from the judges, it can be problematic," Delgado said. "And I think there's been some dynamics there, when it comes to repeat offenders being let back into the very communities that we're trying to protect."

Each candidate expressed strong support for strengthening legal protections and aid for people seeking abortions in New York in the face of the expected end of Roe v. Wade, pending another Supreme Court case where an opinion is expected this month.

No candidate offered a glowing defense when asked whether State Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs, a longtime ally of disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo, should remain at the head of the party. "I don't. I've only spoken with him once. I'm not a fan," said Archila.

"No, he has not included Latinos in anything he has organized," Reyna said.

"I think it's about what the people decide, what the party decides. It's not my choice to make," said Delgado. Hochul opted to keep Jacobs in place when she became governor in August of last year, and he quickly endorsed her for a full term via this year’s election.

The candidates were asked about policies they support to address New York’s affordable housing crisis.

Delgado called for more investment in transit-oriented housing and development of housing available to all income levels, including what he called workforce development options and the creation of more middle-class home ownership opportunities.

Archila touted her position with Williams to build or preserve over 1 million units of permanent affordable housing, and enact more homeowner and tenant protections. She noted they are the only ticket to support the Good Cause Eviction legislation that has been among the most high-profile bills under consideration in state government but did not pass in the legislative session that just ended.

Reyna called for higher density in commercial, transit-rich areas.

All three candidates called for more regulations on corporate real estate buying, and the movement of permanent housing units to the Airbnb marketplace for short-term rentals.

Asked whether they support a plan in the offing that would lower the threshold for overtime pay for farm workers, Delgado said he supports those workers becoming eligible for overtime after a smaller number of weekly hours (the potential move is from 60 to 40) along with a tax credit for farm owners that was approved in the state budget this year. "I think the budget was able to get it right here," he said. "I think the tax credit that's being provided now to the farmers to make sure they can sustain themselves, while at the same time providing this overtime, is of critical importance."

Archila spoke about the importance of respecting the difficult conditions and rights of farm workers and said she supports the overtime increase and wants to see tax benefits delivered more quickly to farmers rather than being phased in over a decade under the current plan. Reyna said the law needs sufficient oversight in order to be effective.

On the pandemic state of emergency first declared in March 2020 by then-Governor Andrew Cuomo, both Reyna and Archila criticized the state's response. Reyna called the shutdown "a mistake," pointing to the economic consequences. "This is a customer base of many, many small businesses,” she said of the many commuters who began working from home. “And we know that the small business is the local economy of every city," she said.

Delgado indicated support for the measures that were taken, saying they saved many lives, but noted a less drastic solution appears possible in future covid surges. "Moving forward with the science that we now have, the medication that we now have, I would love for us to proceed with caution but to proceed, nonetheless," he said.

Archila said there was more the state should be doing now to protect people from COVID-19. "We…have to make sure that we are investing in the infrastructure of health care and shoring up the systems that allow people to weather the storms," she said.

Early voting in primaries for statewide and Assembly seats begins this Saturday, June 18 and goes through June 26; primary day is June 28.

(l-r) Top: Jumaane Williams, Kathy Hochul, Tom Suozzi; Bottom: Rob Astorino, Harry Wilson, Lee Zeldin, Andrew Giuliani 

The Democratic and Republican primaries in the race to become the next Governor of New York are fast-approaching, with early voting June 18-26 and primary day June 28. With three Democrats and four Republicans making their cases to voters and so much at stake for the future of the state, it's all the more important to compare where the candidates stand on the issues and what they are promising to do if elected.

Use the interactive tool below to compare the Democratic or Republican candidates for Governor on a variety of issues, selected based on the topics that candidates have been focused on or that are particularly pressing. Choose up to three candidates at a time on up to five issues at a time.

This comparison tool, brought to you by Gotham Gazette and The Daily News, is being regularly updated as the primary unfolds and candidates continue to offer their stances and proposals on major issues facing New Yorkers.

Rob Astorino, Harry Wilson, Lee Zeldin, and Andrew Giuliani (l-r)

With early voting for the June 28 primary set to begin on Saturday, the four Republican candidates for governor faced off in the sole debate of the race on Monday. The debate was hosted by CBS2, and moderated by anchor Maurice DuBois and reporter Marcia Kramer.

Appearing in person at the debate were former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, and businessman Harry Wilson; Andrew Giuliani, a former White House aide and the son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, participated virtually after refusing to abide by CBS’ COVID-19 vaccination requirement to be present in the studio.

The hour-long debate was an acrimonious one with the candidates repeatedly sniping at each other as they addressed issues including former President Donald Trump’s culpability in the January 6, 2021 insurrection, public safety and gun control, abortion rights, the rising cost of living, vaccine mandates, congestion pricing, and more. 

Zeldin is the frontrunner in the race, having been endorsed by the State Republican Party and many party officials, while a recent Emerson College poll showing him in the lead with 34% of the primary vote. Astorino, the 2014 Republican nominee for governor, came in second in that poll with 16%, Wilson trailed with 15%, and Giuliani was in last place with 13%. It was apparent at the debate that Astorino and Wilson were seeking to cut into Zeldin’s lead by repeatedly attacking his record as a former state senator and trying to link him with disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat. 

Zeldin, for his part, did his best to emulate the Trump playbook, dubbing his opponents “Never Trumper Wilson,” noting the businessman refused to vote for Trump in 2020, and “Rolex Rob,” a reference to the luxury watch that Astorino was gifted by a real estate developer later caught in a bribery scandal. At one point, Wilson even said that Zeldin had asked him to join his gubernatorial ticket in January, a claim that Zeldin said was false, with Wilson then saying he has notes from the conversation.

As Astorino hammered Zeldin for voting for budgets largely designed by then-Governor Cuomo, the exasperated congressman noted that he had endorsed Astorino in his 2014 bid to unseat the governor then seeking a second term. Astorino retorted that Zeldin had not done much to help him win.

Giuliani, meanwhile, mostly stayed out of the fray, avoiding attacks on the others and receiving none in return, which has been the general tenor of the larger campaign as he has criss-crossed the state with his father.

Trump and January 6
As Congress holds public hearings on the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol in Washington D.C., nearly all Republicans have come to Trump’s defense over his role in the attempt to overturn the 2020 election results by force. At the debate, the story was much the same, as the candidates largely said the hearings were a distraction from the kitchen-table issues that matter more to Americans. 

“I think President Trump was a great president and honestly, I'm hopeful that he runs again,” said Giuliani. 

“President Trump told his supporters to go peacefully and patriotically to the Capitol and if President Trump wants to run, he should run and I believe that he will be the Republican nominee and he'll win,” said Zeldin, falsely characterizing how Trump whipped up the mob leading up to and on January 6, 2021, spreading lies about the election and siccing his faithful on Vice President Mike Pence and members of Congress.

Zeldin was among the Republicans in Congress who voted against certifying the 2020 election results on the night of January 6, 2021 once the Capitol had been returned to government control.

Wilson said Monday night that people who invaded the Capitol should be prosecuted, though he did not place any blame on Trump for encouraging it. 

Astorino seemed to be the only one to break from the party line. “I do think he bears some responsibility,” he said of Trump, though he added, “Look, we've got to move on though…These hearings right now are complete and utter political theater in Washington, D.C.”

Gun Control
The Supreme Court seems poised to overturn a state law that restricts the concealed carrying of firearms, but there’s an open question of whether it will allow the state to designate “sensitive places” where individuals cannot carry guns. None of the Republican candidates were in support of such controls, which they insisted would infringe on the Second Amendment rights of New Yorkers. Some decried “gun-free zones” as easy targets and none expressed support for limiting the sale of assault weapons.

The candidates also emphasized what they see as Democrats’ failure to tackle crime, citing policies such as reforms to the state bail laws made in recent years. 

“We’ve got to get back to actually what worked, Broken Windows policing; stop, question and frisk,” Astorino said, referring to controversial policing practices that have fallen out of favor among many Democrats. 

Wilson said the focus should not be on law-abiding gun owners but on “criminals, the mentally ill, and the purveyors of hate.” 

Zeldin went further, calling for a repeal of the state’s bail reform and the Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement (SAFE) Act, a broad gun control package approved in 2013 after the Sandy Hook school massacre. “We have the strictest gun control laws in the entire country. They've gone too far,” he said. 

Giuliani reiterated the push for more stop-and-frisk policing, a program put into effect by his father when he was mayor, and insisted on “empowering the police.” He also said that on day one as governor, he would call on the Legislature to fully repeal the state’s bail reform law and refuse to pass a state budget if it did not happen. 

A common target of attack for each of the candidates as they bemoaned gun violence was Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. The progressive prosecutor, and first Black person to hold his position, came under fire early in his tenure this year for being far too lenient and refusing to prosecute certain crimes, policies he partially altered amid blowback. But that hasn’t stopped Republicans from inaccurately blaming him for increases in crime and all four gubernatorial candidates said Monday that, if elected, they would use their executive authority to remove him from office. 

They also all supported the idea of an amendment to the state constitution that could allow voters to recall state officials, akin to the ouster of San Francisco D.A. Chesa Boudin last week.  

Pocketbook Issues
The candidates had varying solutions to offer for helping New Yorkers cope with the rising cost of living, as they called for cutting taxes and regulations, and reducing wasteful state spending. They seemed mostly focused on reducing the cost of energy as gas prices have skyrocketed. 

Giuliani said he would make New York “truly the best fracking state in the country,” pledging to reverse a fracking ban that was approved in 2014. He later vowed to cut spending by 10% across state government, except in law enforcement. 

Zeldin, similarly, said reversing the fracking ban would “allow us to create jobs and generate revenue and revitalize communities and to be able to drive down energy costs.” He also promised “the largest tax cut in the history of the State of New York.”

Astorino called for natural gas drilling and building out nuclear power. And he touted his experience in keeping spending and taxes low as a county executive. 

Wilson repeatedly said he would turn around the state as he has done with businesses throughout his career. He said he would cut income and property taxes by 20% and repeal regulations to put $3,000-$5,000 back in the pockets of middle-class New Yorkers. 

Abortion Rights
The U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority has indicated that it will overturn Roe v. Wade, which would repeal federal abortion rights — a decision in the case at hand is expected this month. New York is among the states that is already moving to strengthen abortion rights, with Governor Hochul having signed new protections into law on Monday, just hours before the debate, building off of the decision to codify Roe protections into state law in 2019.

Zeldin said he is pro-life and said the state should not allow “late-term, partial-birth abortion”, shouldn’t allow non-doctors to perform abortions and called for parental consent for abortions. “We need to be promoting family and I believe that right now New York's law is going too far when you start allowing late-term, partial-birth abortion,” he said, in reference to a practice that is virtually never used. 

“I'm pro-life and I'm not afraid to say it,” said Giuliani, proceeding to attempt to use the issue of bodily autonomy to attack vaccination mandates put in place during the pandemic. 

Wilson separated himself from the pack in saying he would not attempt to change state abortion law, but did say he was “uncomfortable” with partial-birth abortions and non-doctors performing the procedure. 

“I'm pro-life, I've always been,” said Astorino, though he indicated openness to a “reasonable discussion” about abortion restrictions.  

Rehiring Unvaccinated Workers
Giuliani has said that he would rehire state and city workers who were fired from their jobs for refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19. While the governor would have no authority to demand that of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, who has already refused to do so, Giuliani insisted he would put fired city workers on the state payroll. 

Wilson said he would rehire state workers but said he wouldn’t “go beyond the purview of the governor's office.”

Astorino said he would demand that city workers be given back their jobs as part of any negotiations with the city regarding the state budget or legislation. 

“The state should offer the people who used to work for the city a job working for the state,” Zeldin said, insisting that he will end all covid mandates on day one as governor. 

Congestion Pricing
All the candidates were opposed to the implementation of congestion pricing, which is meant to limit car and truck traffic south of 61st street in Manhattan while raising much-needed revenue for the MTA. 

Zeldin said he would do “everything in my power” to stop congestion pricing, and emphasized the need for public safety to restore mass transit ridership, and therefore revenue, for the MTA. He also referenced long-standing calls he’s made to better run the MTA in order to lower costs.

Astorino called the policy “another backbreaker” while Giuliani called it a “tax” on hardworking New Yorkers. Neither offered ideas for how to make up for the planned revenue from congestion pricing that is supposed to help pay for the MTA capital plan.

Wilson stressed the need for a long-term capital plan for the MTA, “that means dealing with the cost overruns on construction…driven by overtime, bad contracts,” he said. 

Domestic Terrorism and Social Media
Following the racist mass shooting in Buffalo, Governor Hochul called on social media companies to crack down on the forms of hate speech that radicalized the shooter. But Republicans are among those who have been circumspect about restrictions on speech, citing the First Amendment. 

At the debate, Astorino blamed the state’s current policies for the inability to tackle domestic terror. “We need to get very tough on criminals. That always is the case but it's not happening in New York. Charges are being dropped. We’re coddling criminals. We’re turning the other way,” he said. He stressed the need to be careful about limits on the First Amendment and “who's going to define hate speech…That's not a rathole I think we should be going down.”

“I too worry about constraints of the First Amendment,” said Wilson. “I think the focus should be on people we know are problems: criminals, the mentally ill who have violent tendencies, and people who are purveyors of hate.”

Giuliani suggested a repeal of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which shields website owners from liability for content posted by third parties.

“You have to protect First Amendment rights and you can't infringe upon that,” Zeldin said. “That has to be the gold standard.” 

LGBTQ History in Education
Asked by the moderators, given it is pride month, about whether LGBTQ history should be taught in schools, the candidates took things in different directions, talking about sex education and other matters.

“I do not believe that the classrooms in New York State should be used to advance an agenda that is not age appropriate. Let parents deal with this at home,” said Zeldin, who also jumped to attacking Critical Race Theory. “Parents have a fundamental right to control the upbringing of their child and they don't relinquish that right by sending their kids off to school,” he added.

Giuliani cited the recent Parental Rights in Education legislation passed in Florida and signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis. The bill prohibits classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation from kindergarten till third grade. Opponents of the legislation have dubbed it the “Don’t Say Gay” law.” As a father of a young daughter, I'm concerned with how we've brought sexualization into the classroom at such a young age,” Giuliani said. “I too believe that it's so important that parents take the lead in education and that includes sex education.” 

“How are we having a debate in this country, whether sex should be taught to five year olds,” Astorino said, though the question was about LGBTQ history. “It is completely inappropriate.” 

Wilson stood apart again. Education, he said, is “a hugely important issue, but respectfully, the issues you're focused on are not the most important issues.” Instead, he emphasized the need to “reinvigorate civics education” and a “curricular reboot” to help children recover from learning loss during the pandemic. Like the others, he did not answer the question about LGBTQ history.