Aides to then New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo told then Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul she would be removed from the ticket in 2022 as he made plans to seek a fourth term before the catastrophic fallout from a sexual harassment scandal, a new report says.
Hochul, who has attempted to distance herself from her predecessor since rising to the gubernatorial post on Aug. 24, was set to be dropped from the 2022 ticket, as the two top-ranking officials in New York’s executive branch had “no relationship,” a source told the New York Post.
“There was a concerted effort to sideline her as much as possible,” a former Cuomo insider said, adding the aides attempted to discount Hochul and minimize her public profile as much as possible. “It was true before and during the pandemic.”
NEW YORK AG TAKES SWIPE AT CUOMO, LEAVES IMPRESSION SHE MAY BE MULLING RUN FOR GOVERNOR
There was also a concern “about diversity on the ticket,” a third source familiar with Cuomo’s thinking told the outlet.
“We wanted to ensure, going forward, the ticket more accurately reflected the diversity of the state,” the source added.
Hochul confirmed the report, saying during a press conference on Wednesday it was an “open secret” that she and Cuomo were “not close.”
“This was attempted at the end of [the] 2014 primary. This was attempted in 2018, and I’m still standing,” she said.
Hochul was informed about the effort to remove her via a phone call in late January, just before Attorney General Letitia James released a report in February on Cuomo’s handling of data about nursing home deaths during the pandemic, the outlet said. James’s report showed the selective numbers released by Cuomo’s Department of Health likely were approximately 50% higher than reported by the administration.
The former governor’s reputation was further tattered in August, when a separate investigation from James found Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women, despite the former governor’s denial and subsequent resignation.
On Monday, nearly two months after his resignation, Cuomo issued a statement warning that New York is in a “dangerous moment,” prompting some pollsters and Democratic strategists to suspect Cuomo is already poking his head above the water for a comeback.
“We are seeing extremists and political expediency rule the day and ‘the tail is wagging the dog’ in the Democratic Party. Government incompetence, political slogans and pandering are prevailing,” Cuomo said, according to multiple outlets. “This is not New York at her finest and we must never settle for less than the people of the state deserve.”
Pollster Lee Miringoff speculated that Cuomo’s statement was aimed at James, whose political capital has risen to the point that she is considered a prime gubernatorial candidate in 2022, according to Newsday. The attorney general spoke at a recent event for an advocacy nonprofit group, indicating in her remarks she might seek a gubernatorial bid.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The Washington Examiner contacted Hochul’s office but did not immediately receive a response.
