March Madness still afflicts the Empire State’s politics, as Kathy Hochul has doubled back to Elise Stefanik’s soon-to-be empty congressional seat in upstate New York. Specifically, she has chosen to “slow-walk” the process of holding a special election to replace Stefanik, ensuring the seat is empty for as long as possible. Voters are sick of Hochul’s crony conduct. If Republicans take steps to inform voters of Hochul’s swampy conduct they can gain momentum and potentially retake the Executive Mansion in 2026.
To start, Hochul supported a bill that would have left Stefanik’s seat empty for up to a year once she was confirmed by the Senate. Then, she killed the bill and denied her connection to this undemocratic plot. Now Hochul is again taking steps to deny the residents of New York’s 21st Congressional District their constitutionally mandated representation in Congress by promising to “slow walk” the process to replace her.
This reeks of backroom political dealing. Hochul was using the special election bill as leverage to keep the wildly unpopular congestion pricing alive. Unfortunately for her, President Trump is not as keen to engage in the kind of deals she’s accustomed to, and now that he has killed that measure, Hochul is retaliating. This corrupt politicking has hurt Hochul’s popularity, and Republicans must capitalize.
This is not the first time Hochul has engaged in corrupt behavior to the detriment of average New Yorkers. Her cronyism began early in her tenure as governor when she signed the gerrymandered congressional map into law – maps which greatly benefited the Democratic party. She signed these unconstitutional districts despite the fact that New Yorkers expressly rejected gerrymandered congressional maps when they supported an amendment creating an independent redistricting commission. If Hochul respected New Yorkers, she wouldn’t have so blatantly subverted their will.
Next, she stripped local governments of their ability to regulate local elections by moving elections to even years. While this legislation was found unconstitutional, it’s still being appealed by Democrats. This effort to end local control over elections is an overt attempt at enhancing her party’s electoral prospects down-ballot because they cannot win without the national party platform to drive their voters to the polls. If Hochul respected her constituents, she wouldn’t be trying to nationalize local races.
Third, Hochul signed legislation that stripped trial courts outside of Manhattan, Westchester, Albany, or Erie counties of the ability to hear election law cases. What’s notable is that all four counties are Democratic strongholds and usually only elect Democratic jurists. This law was likely a response to what occurred in 2022 when a trial judge in ruby-red Steuben County found her gerrymandered congressional maps unconstitutional, setting the stage for the Court of Appeals to affirm the ruling. Hochul was clearly unhappy that judges who aren’t beholden to the Democratic establishment were consistently ruling against her party’s interests. Rather than comply with the law going forward, her solution was to ensure that her party’s crony judges were the only judges who would hear challenges to the Albany swamp’s election shenanigans. Hochul’s disdain for average New Yorkers runs so deep that she’d rather limit their ability to gain a legal remedy than adhere to state law.
Voters are sick of the Albany corruption and it has made Hochul vulnerable. A recent Siena College poll shows a majority of New Yorkers view her unfavorably, making her favorability rating only 1% higher than Donald Trump’s. Further, if the election were held today, only one-third of voters would reelect her as governor. On the flip side, her Republican rivals are surging in the polls. Notably, Congressman Mike Lawler, who is rumored to be preparing a run for governor, is trailing Hochul by a mere 8 points in a separate poll. Her polling woes have made her so vulnerable that she is facing potential primary challenges from Rep. Ritchie Torres and her hand-picked Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado. While the polling has her winning a Democratic primary, she only wins with a plurality of the vote: Even New York’s Democratic electorate doesn’t like her.
Voters’ disdain for Albany’s backroom dealing has given Republicans the chance to retake the governor’s mansion. This momentum means nothing if Republicans do not find a quality candidate who shines a bright light on Albany’s corrupt practices and mobilizes angry voters to the polls. This is Republicans’ moment – can they seize it?
Ryan Silverstein is a J.D. candidate at Villanova University and a fellow with Villanova’s McCullen Center for Law, Religion and Public Policy. His work has appeared in Fox News, the New York Post, and the Daily Wire.
