NY Gov. Vs. NY Lt. Gov! Delgado Running For Governor Against Hochul

Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado is running for governor, challenging the very person who appointed him to statewide office in 2022: Gov. Kathy Hochul. Delgado formally launched his campaign on Monday with a video that touts his upstate roots and calls for “ bold, decisive, transformational leadership.” His entry into the race sets up a Democratic primary clash with Hochul, who is running for a second full term in 2026. “ Listen, the powerful and well-connected have their champions,” Delgado, the former congressional representative from the Hudson Valley, said in the video.

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“I’m running for governor to be yours.” Hochul hand-selected Delgado for the No. 2 role in 2022 before winning a full term alongside him the same year. But the two quickly had a falling out over Delgado’s role — or lack thereof — in the governor’s administration, which spilled into public view when the lieutenant governor broke with Hochul to call on then-President Joe Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee. In February, Delgado announced he wouldn’t run alongside Hochul again in 2026, all while flirting with a gubernatorial run of his own. Delgado served in Congress from 2019 until he was appointed lieutenant governor, representing a district that included his hometown of Rhinebeck. A Schenectady native, Delgado attended Colgate University and Harvard University, both of which he highlighted in his launch video.

Source: WXXI News