Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) on Tuesday dismissed the idea that socialists can win statewide, putting them at arm’s length despite her budding alliance with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
After initial reticence, Hochul has begun to draw closer to New York City’s first socialist mayor in recent months, heralding a relationship of collaboration rather than an “enemy role.”
In an interview with Politico published this week, Hochul stood by her “very positive relationship” with Mamdani. At the same time, she warned New York as a whole is not necessarily receptive to a socialist agenda, framing outreach to Republican voters as vital in what she said is a purple state. Her comments come as a rebuke to Mamdani, who has said he’s confident socialists can win “anywhere.”
“The state is far more purple than people realize. It really is,” she said. When you just look at Democratic, Republican enrollment, it looks like there’s more Democrats. But 25% of the voters are independents who tend to vote Republican.”
“When people say, ‘Oh, people should be winning 25 points in a true blue state in a wave here,’ you don’t know New York then,” Huchul added. “We have major areas of the state, including where I come from, that are MAGA, that support Donald Trump.”
Though socialist figures such as Mamdani are gaining influence on the Left, the governor said she believes the Democratic Party will remain “a capitalist party” in the coming years.
“New York City is the epicenter of capitalism. And because of these businesses coming here, we’re the No. 1 destination for college graduates now. We just surpassed San Francisco and the Silicon Valley for the most number of tech jobs,” Hochul told Politico’s Jonathan Martin. “I wanna be the place where the talent comes to. And that is capitalism. People have to come here and be successful. You know why? Because they generate the revenue so I can support universal child care, education, building more housing, and they create jobs.”
Hochul is currently in the throes of her reelection campaign against Republican Bruce Blakeman, and has campaigned with Mamdani as she crisscrosses the state, though she is known as a more centrist, establishment-oriented politician than the mayor.
This week, she framed bipartisan collaboration as the path forward in New York, touting her relationships with Mamdani and President Donald Trump, both of whom she says she shares deep disagreements with, as the best option to advance the state’s interests.
“You just make it work. I don’t have an option in life,” Hochul said. “I have to work with the president. I work with every one of my mayors. I mean, my job is to make sure that this state is phenomenally successful, including all my cities, of which New York is a significant one, no doubt about it.”
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She revealed that she also pushed Mamdani to develop a working relationship with Trump. The pair’s friendly encounter in the Oval Office following Mamdani’s mayoral victory last year caught many by surprise, but Hochul said it was important “to take [Trump’s] sights off of New York City in a hostile way and find common ground.’
“I said, ‘Go charm the heck out of him. You guys are charming guys. Go charm each other. Just keep the sights off of New York,’” she said. “They get a detente. I’ll go in and push for things that I need to and have the conversations. So it works. I think the president still really likes New York City. And that’s good for us. You know, he still cares about this city.”
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
