Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) is looking to emphasize an obvious theme important to voters in the 2024 election for the coming year: affordability.
The governor has already rolled out proposals for rebate checks and tax credits that will likely let voters know that their government is aware of rising prices. Hochul says the theme change is not due to President-elect Donald Trump‘s campaign, which mainly focused on rising inflation.
“I did not need the November elections to tell me affordability and public safety are the No. 1 and 2 concerns,” she told reporters. “I will do it independent of elections, it’s the right thing to do. People are hurting right now, and we cannot be tone deaf as a party, as a nation, or a state to those cries for help.”
Democrats have been criticized for focusing too much on attacking Trump’s character and faults instead of focusing on rising inflation during President Joe Biden’s first term. Hochul was also guilty of that at points, keying her Democratic National Convention speech on how Trump “wasn’t raised with the New York values that I know.”
She spent the majority of that speech bashing Trump and his criminal convictions while declining to mention the affordability crisis in New York and the country. She did tout some of the state’s accomplishments, including opening a Micron Technology plant in Syracuse.
Now, Hochul and other New York Democrats are looking to backpedal on their Trump-attacking tactics.
“This is a different time and it’s a different circumstance,” New York Democratic Chair Jay Jacobs told Politico. “You have to read the room. Voters are not looking for either party to engage in personal attacks and the like. They’re looking for results.”
The main warning sign New York Democrats received was their lackluster performance against Trump in the 2024 election, giving up the closest margin in the state for a Republican since 1988. He also drew landmark support from New York City, which has historically revolted against the GOP.
Housing affordability and crime in New York City are likely the reasons for the underperformance. Both issues have heavily affected Hochul’s and Mayor Eric Adams’s popularity in the city.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The rebate checks and tax credits will also directly help her 2026 reelection bid. The checks will offer $300 for families making less than $300,000 and $500 for families making under $150,000. The tax credit will offer $1,000 to 1.6 million New York families for each child under 4.
Having Hochul’s checks in mind when paying their bills could help her bid, or hurt it if she is not able to convince New Yorkers that she has done enough for affordability otherwise.