Gubernatorial primaries

Governor Kathy Hochul is trying to make history as the first female governor elected in the state with just 10 months in office under her belt. She is facing Representative Tom Suozzi and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.

Hochul has positioned herself as the frontrunner in the three-way primary field, in part through a relentless campaign fundraising strategy that saw her amass more than $30 million — far outpacing any of her opponents.

The governor’s campaign has blanketed the state’s airwaves touting her record during her short time in office, which includes a gas-tax reduction through the end of the year and a series of gun-control and abortion-access measures she signed into law just this month.

But Hochul’s tenure has not been without controversy. She selected then-state Sen. Brian Benjamin, a Manhattan Democrat, to replace her as lieutenant governor despite questions over his past campaign-fundraising tactics. Within six months, Benjamin was arrested on federal bribery charges and resigned.

Hochul’s opponents have faulted her for spearheading a deal to build a new $1.4 billion football stadium for the Buffalo Bills, which came with $850 million in direct public subsidies. And they’ve latched on to her past positions on gun issues, which earned her an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association when she represented a conservative-leaning district in Congress a decade ago.

Hochul has said her views have changed on the issue of gun control, and she successfully led the effort to boost the minimum age for purchasing a semi-automatic rifle from 18 to 21 in New York after an 18-year-old killed 10 people in a Buffalo supermarket last month.

Suozzi’s positions align with Hochul’s more often than not, so he is campaigning on his track record as a “proven executive,” having once served as a town mayor and county executive during his 30 years in politics. He has framed Hochul, who also held local office and, briefly, a seat in Congress, as unprepared or unwilling to take the necessary steps to improve the state in essential ways.

Williams, the No. 2 official in New York City, is the candidate favored by progressives, including the Working Families Party, the influential third party with a habit of backing insurgent, left-leaning candidates. This is his second race against Hochul; he came within seven percentage points of defeating her in the 2018 lieutenant governor primary.

He has criticized the governor for not doing more to focus on street-level crime in Harlem, the Bronx and other areas susceptible to gun violence.

All the public polling has shown Hochul with a comfortable lead over her two rivals, but the lieutenant governor’s race is much harder to gauge.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face the candidate that emerges from a contentious, four-way Republican primary Tuesday between Representative Lee Zeldin, former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, businessman Harry Wilson, and Andrew Giuliani, a former Trump administration aide who is son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Zeldin, of Long Island, has the backing of Republican Party leaders across the state, who voted earlier this year to make him their designated candidate — a distinction that gave him an automatic spot on the primary ballot without petitioning.

Giuliani is making his first run for elected office and has made his unabashed support of Donald Trump a central part of his campaign. During a debate earlier this month, Giuliani repeated the discredited, incorrect claim that Trump rightfully won the 2020 election, going as far as claiming a “crime” had been perpetrated on the American people.

But Trump has not formally endorsed any candidate in the Republican race. Along with Giuliani, Trump counts Astorino and Zeldin — both of whom have been staunch defenders of Trump on cable news programs — as allies.

New York has more than twice as many Democrats as Republicans, with independent voters also outpacing the GOP. The state hasn’t elected a Republican to statewide office since George Pataki won his third term as governor in 2002.

It is a closed-primary state, meaning only enrolled members of a party can vote in their respective primary.

Democratic Lieutenant Governor Candidates Antonio Delgado, Ana Maria Archila, and Diana Reyna

It’s a three-way race for Democrats running for the Lieutenant Governor seat.

Antonio Delgado, Governor Kathy Hochul‘s recently named lieutenant governor, has a significant financial advantage and the Democratic Party endorsement.

Delgado, a Schenectady native, is an attorney who won election to the House of Representatives in 2018 and again in 2020, representing a district in the Hudson Valley. He lives in Rhinebeck, in Dutchess County, and describes himself as Afro-Latino.

The contenders are each linked to a different candidate for governor, but in New York primaries they’re elected separately.

This opens up the possibility that Hochul could win her primary but have to run in the general election – and govern – with a lieutenant governor who doesn’t fully support her agenda.

Ana María Archila is the running mate of the most left-leaning gubernatorial candidate, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, and is backed by the Working Families Party and other progressive organizations and political figures such as Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Archila, who was born in Colombia and lives in Brooklyn, is a longtime progressive activist who co-founded Make the Road NY, an immigrant-rights organization.

The third candidate, Diana Reyna, is the running mate of Representative Tom Suozzi.

A first generation Dominican-American, the Brooklyn resident served 12 years in the New York City Council, where she said she focused on efforts to fight gang violence, spur economic development and encourage the construction of new affordable housing. She also was a deputy Brooklyn borough president.

The last Democratic primary for lieutenant governor was a close race, with Hochul defeating Williams, then a New York City Council member, by 53% to 47%.

In the general election, party nominees run on a joint ticket.

There is no Republican primary for lieutenant governor, with Alison Esposito running unopposed for the nomination.

Polls are open in Chautauqua County from 6:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m. Visit votechautauqua.com for more information on polling sites and to view sample ballots.

Early voting

Chautauqua County Board of Election Commissioners Luz Torres and Brian Abram said all registered Democratic and Republican voters are eligible to vote in the primary. Democrats will vote for who will run Governor and Lieutenant

Governor on that line while the Republicans will decide on Governor candidates only. There are no local primary races in the county.

All four of the Early Voting sites in the County will be open from Saturday June 18 thru Sunday June 26.

Voters can choose to cast their ballot early at:
• Board of Elections Offices in the Hall R. Clothier Building in Mayville
• Chautauqua County Fairgrounds in Dunkirk
• Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown
• Chautauqua Mall in Lakewood

Early voting sites are open Saturdays and Sundays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday and Tuesday noon to 8:00 p.m., Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Any voter who casts their ballot early cannot cast another ballot on subsequent early voting days or on Election Day.

Also new this year, voters who request an Absentee Ballot will no longer be able to vote on the voting machines on Election Day.

Commissioner Torres said, “All Boards of Elections will be counting their Absentees before Election Day to provide the most accurate numbers on Election Night. Therefore, voters who request an Absentee Ballot; whether they vote it or not, will not be able to scan their ballot on the voting machine. Instead, voters who show up at the poll site can still vote a Provisional Affidavit Ballot. If their Absentee was not returned, then their Affidavit Ballot would count.”

For more information, call (716) 753-4580 or email, vote@chqgov.com. Visit www.votechautauqua.com to review absentee ballot options, download voter registration forms, and poll site locations.

Commissioner Brian Abram says voter registration forms must be physically received at the Board of Elections’ office by 5pm, Monday, February 14. He said , “As the Board of Elections prepares for petitioning and the primary period, election law states that we have to prevent individuals from changing their party affiliation between February 15 and seven days following the Primary (July 5 this year).”

Abram added that changes submitted through the Department of Motor Vehicles must be made by Friday, February 11 in order for the DMV to transmit the data to the Board of Elections in time.

Commissioner Luz Torres said, “Election Law makes it clear that if we do not physically have possession of your enrollment change by February 14, your change will not take effect until after the June Primary. Without the party change form, individuals wishing to cast a ballot in this year’s Primary may be unable to do so. You must be registered and affiliated with the political party who’s Primary you wish to vote in.”

The Board of Elections is open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily; and will remain open until 5 p.m. on Monday, February 14 to meet statutory requirements for the last day to receive political party changes.
Voter Registration Forms are available online at votechautauqua.com and at any local municipal office, library, post office or at the Board of Elections.