Democratic candidates angle for nomination in race for governor

In the shadow of a Martin Luther King Jr. statue, New York State Attorney General Letitia James kicked off her first formal campaign event on Thursday, in her bid for Governor, with the endorsement of Westchester County Executive George Latimer and 13 others.

As New York looks to build back after the pandemic, Attorney General James said New York is at a crossroads and it is time for a change.

"We cannot return to normal and that is why I am running for Governor," James said addressing reporters. "I am running for Governor because I believe in change. Because I believe the status quo will not do."

Also on Thursday, Governor Kathy Hochul snagged endorsements from the suburbs as well. Nine elected officials from Rockland and Westchester counties announced their support of Governor Hochul’s re-election campaign.

But the field of Democratic candidates is growing, with Congressman Tom Suozzi officially launching his run for Governor, angling himself as the "common-sense Democrat" in the primary.

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New York State Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs, who already announced his endorsement of Governor Kathy Hochul, says he was hoping to avoid a primary.

"I think unity is far more important than anybody’s individual desires and that’s what I’m going to be stressing to Tom and others along the way," Jacobs said. "I’m looking for everyone to begin thinking about the Democratic Party and the people of this state."

New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams was the first to jump in the race to challenge Governor Hochul and is expected to bring more progressive policy issues to the forefront on the debate stage.  

But who are the top-tier candidates?

Dr. Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, says it is too soon to tell.

"This is a primary that has everything except a clear definition of where things are," Dr. Miringoff said.

Dr. Miringoff says Congressman Suozzi is bound to potentially eat into some of Governor Hochul’s votes in the suburbs, just as Williams is likely to take away some of James’ votes in New York City.

Yet right now, Dr. Miringoff says Governor Hochul has the power of incumbency, even as a Buffalo native.

"It’s very hard for an upstate Democrat to win a primary statewide," Dr. Miringoff said. "Working in her favor is the number of candidates and I suspect if Bill DeBlasio got into this race that it would probably help Hochul at the disadvantage of James."

Bail reform is already starting to become one of the main topics in the governor’s race.

Governor Hochul and New York City Mayor-Elect Eric Adams both say they are open to making changes to the law.

When asked, James says she will need to take a hard look at the data.

"What we really need to do is look at the data, and we should not appeal to fear, we should not be cherry-picking data," James said. "We need to dispassionately look at bail reform."