Governor Kathy Hochul of New York, a Democrat, won her first full term as governor on Tuesday, October 8, defeating Trump-aligned Republican Congressman Lee Zeldin.
Surviving a strong wave of voter discontent regarding public safety and inflation, Hochul became the first woman elected to the highest office in the state.
A Democrat from western New York, Hochul, 64, had already been governing the state since August 2021, after Governor Andrew M. Cuomo resigned amid sexual harassment allegations. She immediately began running for a full term, demonstrating a talent for raising large sums of money for her campaign.
“Yes, the glass ceiling has finally been shattered in the state of New York,” Hochul said in a brief victory speech in Lower Manhattan. “The lesson from tonight’s victory is that, given the choice, New Yorkers refuse to turn back in our long march toward progress.”
Her victory was more decisive than expected. The polls showed that voters left little doubt about the extent of their dissatisfaction, particularly with the spikes in crime during the pandemic era. Hochul’s victory over Zeldin came with one of the narrowest margins of any governor in the state in the last three decades. She received 52.7% of the votes, compared to Zeldin’s 47.4%. The suburbs of Long Island and even parts of New York City turned to Republicans after years of voting for Democrats.