What Hochul said about Lawler's decision not to run against her
And Delgado wants a probe of Hochul's CDPAP transition.
Good afternoon — it’s Wednesday and Vanilla Ice Cream Day.
In today’s CapCon:
Here’s what Gov. Kathy Hochul told reporters Wednesday in response to Rep. Mike Lawler’s decision not to run for governor.
Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado (who’s on the CapCon pod this week) said Wednesday that Hochul’s CDPAP transition should be investigated.
Lawler has introduced a new bill with a familiar name: the MAMDANI Act.
Fines on criminal corporations in New York could increase eight-fold this year.
A new bill would make it easier for homeowners to build accessory dwelling units.
Names in today’s CapCon: Mike Lawler, Kathy Hochul, Bruce Blakeman, Elise Stefanik, Antonio Delgado, Zohran Mamdani, Zellnor Myrie, Nily Rozic, Dana Levenberg, Phil Steck, Jo Anne Simon,
☀️ Summer Sale: Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado joins us this week on the Capitol Confidential podcast. If you subscribe today, you’ll get that straight to your inbox Thursday morning.
Click here for a free 30-day trial of CapCon. Thanks for your support!
☑️ Hochul’s response to Lawler not running against her
If you tuned out from the news Wednesday, you may not have heard that U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler announced this morning that he would not run for governor in 2026.
Lawler will instead seek reelection to a third term representing his lower Hudson Valley district, which is expected to be competitive and play into which party controls the U.S. House in 2027. At least seven Democrats are running against him.
“After months of deliberating over this and really working through it, I’ve decided the right thing to do for me and my family and my district is to run for reelection,” Lawler said in a television interview Wednesday on Fox & Friends.
That’s good news for U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, the other Republican most talked about as her party’s nominee next year. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is also a potential candidate.
But Stefanik said Wednesday that she’s not going to make an announcement on whether she’ll challenge Hochul until after November’s elections.
“I am focused on supporting strong Republican local and county candidates on the ballot this November to lay the groundwork with a strong team for next year,” Stefanik said.
Stefanik has ramped up her attacks on Hochul in the last few months. She posts about Hochul on social media multiple times a day most days and has publicly targeted the governor as well.
But public polling has shown that, with Stefanik as her party’s nominee, support for Hochul could actually grow.
So it wasn’t a surprise that Hochul didn’t mention Stefanik Wednesday when she was asked how she felt about Lawler’s decision not to challenge her next year.
She twisted the knife instead.
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