New York Democrats and Republicans are taking a strategy out of the same playbook to appeal to voters this pivotal election year: Focusing on two men in power who aren’t on the ballot — President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Campaign strategies are taking shape as both parties will officially nominate their candidates next month for November’s gubernatorial battle.
As Gov. Kathy Hochul faces a tough reelection bid, she’s not only focused on Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman — her expected Republican challenger — but spends significant time talking about Trump’s record.
“Washington is not leading either,” Hochul told reporters at an unrelated event in Western New York on Monday. “And in fact, the president is trying to take away the power of states to do anything to regulate artificial intelligence or this space. And I reject that.
“If you’re going to lead, then let’s see it. If you’re not, then don’t get in my way.”
Democratic strategists said they’re advising candidates in the state to focus on Trump’s agenda they argue is failing New Yorkers. Party leaders hope the president’s unpopular decisions, like tariffs or cutting funding to programs, will build momentum for Democrats across the state.
“It makes sense politically and it makes sense on a policy level as well,” Democratic strategist Trip Yang told Spectrum News 1. “Donald Trump is very unpopular in New York. He lost New York state in 2024 by 12 points, and he lost New York state in 2020 by more than 20 points.”
Meanwhile, Blakeman, a moderate pro-choice Republican, is telling voters they’re miserable under Hochul’s approach to budgeting, immigration and public safety. And as GOP leaders have discussed, he’s not letting anyone forget the governor’s decision to support New York City’s new mayor Mamdani — a democratic socialist.
“When people here want their taxes cut, they want their hospitals renewed, they want infrastructure built, they want more money for schools and education for their kids…she’s doing everything wrong,” Blakeman said of Hochul over the weekend. “She just endorsed Mamdani — the guy’s a communist. I mean, Kathy Hochul is so out of touch with a typical New Yorker, and we need new leadership.”
Republicans said they’ll keep holding Hochul accountable for Mamdani’s decisions and won’t stop reminding voters that the governor helped elect a socialist.
The GOP also pushes back that Trump remains deeply unpopular with New Yorkers.
“The pendulum is starting to swing on Trump Derangement Syndrome here in New York,” Republican strategist Chapin Fay said. “He’s going to be less of a problematic factor. And if his policy agenda items are paying dividends, if tariffs are working, if inflation is down, the jobs reports seem to be already coming out better than they were under the last four years. If all that continues…I think Trump could help.”
Blakeman, endorsed by Trump, continues to lean into his ties to the president.
Political strategist Hank Sheinkopf said the Long Islander’s close friendship with Trump may not matter to voters as much as their concerns about the state’s high cost-of-living or public safety policies.
“Trump can’t be blamed for bail reform,” Sheinkopf said. “Trump can’t be blamed for parole reform and on and on and on and on. It will be a battle about values to a large extent.”
Voters will decide if either candidate’s ties to Trump, or Mamdani, outweighs their track record.
Assemblyman Brian Cunningham, one of Hochul’s potential picks to be her running mate, said Democrats can’t campaign on Trump alone. All eyes are on the Legislature and what lawmakers prioritize getting done in Albany this legislative session.
“If you look at the track record of Democrats who are running in this election cycle…if you look at the leadership of Kathy Hochul, she’s delivered,” Cunningham said. “If you look at what Democrats have pushed back on in Washington, those have been important issues. While they don’t have the votes to implement their policy ideas, I think their ideas are winning the day.”
Blakeman’s campaign did not immediately return a request for comment.
A spokesperson with Hochul’s campaign said the governor has been clear about where she disagrees with both Blakeman and Mamdani.
“Bruce Blakeman said on these airwaves, ‘I never disagree with my wife in public and I’ll never disagree with the president in public,’ but New Yorkers have found plenty to disagree with him on,” said Ryan Radulovacki, a spokesperson with Hochul’s campaign. “From his running Long Island’s critical safety net hospital into the ground to saying nothing when Donald Trump tried to defund the police by $187 million in this state… Bruce Blakeman can praise Donald Trump and his policies all he wants, and we won’t stop him — his problem is that New Yorkers will, whether it’s next month or in ten.”