5 things that shaped New York politics in 2025
And a full list of the 715 bills introduced this year since the end of session.
Good afternoon — It’s Tuesday and Bacon Day.
In today’s CapCon:
It’s been a wild ride. Here are five things that shaped New York politics this year.
Full list: State lawmakers have filed 715 bills since the end of this year’s session. Here’s all of them, separated by which have same-as bills and which do not.
Republicans are invoking the election of Zohran Mamdani as New York City mayor to challenge the state’s even-year election law.
Names in today’s CapCon: Zohran Mamdani, Kathy Hochul, Elise Stefanik, Bruce Blakeman, Donald J. Trump, William Brewer III,
CapCon Note: We won’t be sending you a newsletter tomorrow (Dec. 31) and Thursday (Jan. 1) but we’ll be back on Friday (Jan. 2).
💥 5 things that shaped New York politics in 2025
We’ve reached the end of the year and, despite it being an odd year (in more ways than one), there was no rest for the New York news cycle.
This year brought new members to the state Legislature and Congress, a heightened focus on the high cost of living in New York and a new political dynamic that’s sure to feature prominently in 2026.
Here are five things that shaped politics in New York this year.
1. The election of Zohran Mamdani as New York City mayor
At the start of the year, Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani’s campaign for New York City mayor was considered a long shot. He launched it in late 2024.
If you were to ask most elected Democrats who they thought would win the Democratic primary, most would not have had Mamdani on their list in January. The field was crowded and Mamdani hadn’t yet broken through.
Many Democrats thought it was inevitable that their party would choose former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo as their nominee for mayor in June.
But Mamdani’s self-built movement surged in the final two months ahead of the primary as he positioned himself against Cuomo. He would end up handily winning the primary in June and defeating Cuomo a second time in November.
Democrats are still trying to figure out what Mamdani’s election will mean for their party moving forward, if anything.
2. Elise Stefanik’s wild ride in state and federal politics
U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik was poised at the start of the year to be the next ambassador to the United Nations. She was nominated for the job by President Donald J. Trump.
She spent the next few months sharply criticizing the United Nations as a “deep den of antisemitism” that she pledged to fight when she took office. Stefanik even carried out a “farewell tour” across her district ahead of her expected confirmation.
But those dreams were dashed at the end of March when, at the behest of Republicans in the U.S. House, Stefanik’s nomination was pulled.
They couldn’t afford to lose her vote while members moved forward with priorities promised by President Donald J. Trump on the campaign trail. She quietly returned to Congress with no immediate plans.
Stefanik began considering a campaign for governor within weeks of her nomination being withdrawn, saying in April that she’d been encouraged by Republican leaders in New York to seek the nomination in 2026.
She spent the next several months publicly targeting Gov. Kathy Hochul’s policies, record and eventual endorsement of Mamdani’s campaign for mayor before officially launching her campaign in November.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman entered the race in December, saying he would compete in a primary against Stefanik and considered himself to be the better candidate despite her long list of endorsements.
Stefanik brushed off Blakeman’s challenge before ultimately deciding to abandon her run for governor on Dec. 20.
3. The rising cost of energy and how it’s generated
The state Public Service Commission regulates the private companies that operate utilities in New York, including the delivery rates they set for consumers.
It was placed in the spotlight this year when multiple utility companies requested steep rate increases. Energy bills have risen expeditiously for ratepayers in recent years and Democrats had a new focus on the state’s cost of living.
A group of lawmakers, at one point this year, suggested that the commission should be replaced entirely because of its inability to contain energy costs for consumers.
Their perception of the commission worsened when it approved new rates over the summer, even though they were smaller than the companies had requested. Some rate increases are still pending.
But its endorsement of a controversial natural gas pipeline downstate locked in opposition of its existence from environmental advocates and lawmakers, who said the commission didn’t reflect the state’s energy policies.
The commission has defended its actions by reminding lawmakers and advocates how state law defines its responsibilities. Their top priority, the commission’s chair has said, is ensuring the supply of energy is consistently reliable.
Without the pipeline, they argued, energy reliability downstate would be in jeopardy. Opposing it would contradict their statutory responsibility.
Their anger at the commission has extended to Hochul, who has shifted to an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy that she contends will keep costs contained for consumers.
4. Trump’s impact and dysfunction in Congress
Democrats began to warn that federal funding cuts were coming immediately after Trump was inaugurated in January.
Various policy changes at the federal level have prompted several lawsuits from New York Attorney General Letitia James, who’s often partnered with other states on litigation against the Trump administration.
But the two largest events to impact the state this year at the federal level were the passing of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” and the 43-day shutdown of the federal government.
The bill, signed into law by Trump in July, makes widespread changes to how federal dollars can be spent on Medicaid. Republicans also declined to extend premium health care tax credits that Democrats had scheduled to sunset this year.
The result, according to the state Division of Budget, was a $750 million shortfall in the current state budget and a $3 billion gap next year. Lawmakers have been contemplating new revenue sources to make up the loss.
The shutdown gave Hochul new tools to criticize Republicans, like when the Trump administration did not immediately release food assistance funding in November.
Republicans have not settled on what to do about the expiration of the tax credits, which will drive up premiums for some low-income consumers. The tax credits were enacted during the pandemic and were supposed to be temporary.
That discussion is expected to continue in 2026 at the federal level and in New York, where the cost of health care has continued to rise.
5. Redistricting in Texas
A plan from Trump and Republicans in Texas to redraw their congressional districts in an effort to elect more Republicans incensed Hochul and New York Democrats.
Democrats from Texas even joined Hochul at the state Capitol for a new conference about the situation. Hochul, at the time, said “we are at war.”
Some Democrats suggested that New York follow suit and redraw its own congressional districts in response but the state constitution only allows that to happen once each decade unless those maps are upended in court.
A pair of Democrats have since introduced a bill that would allow redistricting in New York mid-decade if another state does it first.
And a new lawsuit challenging the lines of New York’s 11th Congressional District could be just what Democrats need to get a head start on that effort. That litigation is ongoing.
⚖️ Republicans invoke Zohran Mamdani to challenge New York’s even-year election law
The legal landscape has changed since Republicans filed a federal lawsuit in October challenging New York’s even-year election law.
That law moves elections for most local offices to even years. It also doesn’t impact positions enshrined in the state constitution, including district attorneys, county sheriffs and county clerks.
It did not impact this year’s local elections but will modify the schedule moving forward. The law, importantly, does not apply to local elections in New York City.
Voters in New York City were instead asked on the ballot in November if they wanted to move their local elections to even years. They rejected that proposal, leaving their odd-year elections for city offices in place.
One of those voters was Mamdani, who joined the majority of voters in opposition of moving the city’s elections.
That’s further evidence of why the law should be struck down, attorneys for the state Republican Party and local affiliates wrote in an amended complaint filed in their challenge against the law late Monday.
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