World News

Democrat Kathy Hochul becomes the first female governor of New York

A progressive Democrat, Kathy Hochul shot to fame after winning a US House special election of 26th district of NY against the Republican incumbent, Chris Lee.

In two weeks, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul will become the first female governor of the most populous state of the USA, New York. Hochul is a 62-year old democrat who has served in Armed Services and Homeland Security committees.

Current Gov. Andrew Cuomo has resigned from the post on Tuesday, in a television address. The news of his resignation came amid rising legal pressure and demand for leaving his chair by President Biden and other democrats following an inquiry on sexual harassment claims by 11 women. He will formally resign within two weeks.

Kathy Hochul has tweeted supporting his decision on resigning from the chair. She wrote, “I agree with Governor Cuomo’s decision to step down. It is the right thing to do and in the best interest of New Yorkers.” She also wrote that she is ready to take the chair of the governor, announcing her appointment.

Kathy Hochul Is A Law Graduate Who Has Served In Various Offices

Kathy Hochul holds a Juris Doctor degree from Catholic University preceded by a bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University. She has served as an Erie County Clerk for four years and as a Hamburg Town council member for 14 years. Before joining politics, she has also served as legal counsel and legislative assistant to the US politicians John LaFalce and Daniel Patrick Moynihan.

Kathy was born in Buffalo, New York, and was raised by a blue-collar, Irish Catholic family. She visits all the 62 New York counties every year. A progressive Democrat, she shot to fame after winning a US House special election for the 26th district of NY against a Republican incumbent, Chris Lee.

Like her appointment as the governor of NY, this special election also happened due to a scandal that forced Chris Lee to resign. Kathy Hochul leads 10 regional economic development councils that will help to make a decision for project investment in the state.

Hochul built a transitional house for domestic violence victims in 2006. She also leads the Women Suffrage Commission and extended her support to the fight for $15 as minimum wage and paid family leave in NY.

Kathy Hochul And Cuomo Is Reportedly Not Close To Each Other

According to the New York Times, Kathy has said that she hasn’t spoken to Cuomo since February. Despite giving her ticket for Lieutenant Governor Election in 2014, Andrew Cuomo cut her from his inner circle. She was not seen during the daily covid briefings by his side regularly. He did not even mention his Lt.Gov. Kathy, in his recently published book, ‘American Crisis: Leadership Lessons From The Covid-19’

However, during his speech, Andrew appreciated her capabilities as a member of the New York governing body. He has said, “Kathy Hochul, my lieutenant governor, is smart and competent.” 

New York Governor And Scandals

It is not the first time that a New York governor had to resign from his chair prematurely. Before Cuomo, Eliot Spitzer and his successor has drawn public outbursts for their conduct. Eliot Spitzer resigned in 2008 because of his patronage for prostitutes. A US tabloid article captioned as ‘Luv Gov’ unfolded the scandal.

David Patterson becomes the state’s first black president, succeeding Spitzer. But even he was asked by then-president Obama to renounce his re-election bid. Obama asked him to reconsider his re-election amidst the uproar for his intervention in a domestic violence case against a close aide.

Show More

Sayantika Bhowal

Sayantika Bhowal is a news connoisseur who is particularly interested in politics and human interest stories. She holds More »

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisment
Back to top button