Feud between New York’s governor and her No. 2 boils over

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This article was published 25/02/2025 (397 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A simmering feud between New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and her handpicked lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado, has boiled over after months of discord between the two Democrats culminated in what looked like a big breakup.

Delgado, who was appointed by Hochul in 2022 after her previous lieutenant governor was indicted, announced Monday that he would not run for reelection alongside Hochul in 2026, though he said in a post on X that he was “deeply committed” to finishing his current term.

He didn’t give a specific reason for giving up the job, but he took a general swipe at the current state of affairs, saying New Yorkers deserves “more leaders in government willing to hold themselves accountable to the people — and only to the people.”

A little while later, Hochul’s office hit back.

“Today, Antonio Delgado finally said out loud what has been obvious for quite some time: he is simply not interested in doing the job of the Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York. Governor Hochul had already begun taking steps to identify a new running mate for 2026,” Hochul’s communications director, Anthony Hogrebe, said in a statement.

Hogrebe said the governor’s office would start handing off Delgado’s responsibilities to someone else, to make sure the job is “no longer neglected.”

“Governor Hochul wishes him the best in his future endeavors,” Hogrebe added.

The split was a long time coming.

The fissures became visible last year ahead the presidential election, when Delgado called for former President Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid just as Hochul had become a big Biden surrogate on the cable news circuit. Delgado also appeared to conduct his own effort to help Democratic congressional candidates in New York while the governor was meant to be leading the charge in the down-ballot races.

After the election, the younger Delgado wrote an op-ed for The New York Times that called for his party to head in a different direction, closing his piece with this line: “A new path is both necessary and possible, but we will not chart it with the same politicians telling the same old stories. We are ready for the next generation.”

He also got out in front of Hochul on New York City Mayor Eric Adams this month when he called on Adams to resign as the governor was taking a more measured approach. The very public difference of opinion on Adams led to Hogrebe releasing a statement that said “Lieutenant Governor Delgado does not now and has not ever spoken on behalf of this administration.”

For Hochul, the fact that her lieutenant was appearing to chart his own course underscored a more pressing political reality. She is heading toward what’s expected to be a tough reelection fight next year as serious challengers wait in the wings.

Delgado has been rumored to be mulling a challenge to his boss and, in his statement Monday, made clear that “all options are on the table.”

“I am determined to be your voice in state government now and in the future,” he wrote.

Before becoming lieutenant governor, Delgado served one term in the U.S. House, representing a district in the Hudson Valley and the Catskills north of New York City. Since becoming lieutenant governor, his public profile has been limited. The position is largely ceremonial. Lieutenant governors are expected to let the governor enjoy the spotlight and not make news themselves — something Hochul did well when she was lieutenant governor.

Hochul ascended into the top job in 2021 when Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigned after being accused by multiple women of sexual harassment.

Hochul’s first lieutenant governor, Brian Benjamin, resigned in 2022 after federal prosecutors charged him with helping a real estate developer get state grants in exchange for campaign contributions. That case never went to trial. Federal prosecutors dropped the charges in January after one of the key witnesses died, saying they could no longer prove Benjamin committed a crime.