ALBANY, June 28 — The number that matters: zero. That is the chance a Republican wins in the districts where Democratic Socialists of America candidates just swept a slate of primary races against incumbent Democrats. The bottom line for Gov. Kathy Hochul is that she is now the target.
“She knows we’re coming for her,” Gustavo Gordillo, co-chair of the city wing of the DSA, declared. Osman Chaudhary, who runs the DSA political team, claimed that “we have a Democratic Socialist mandate in New York City.” By the numbers, the DSA emerged undefeated in a select group of congressional and legislative primaries.
Turnout was abysmally low in most areas, but the DSA was superbly organized. November will bring a new wave of radicals for Congress and the state Legislature. The political battleground is being reshaped: left vs. far left, not left vs. right.
Hochul has only herself to blame, according to critics. She ignored the warning not to feed the alligators.
Instead, she gave Mayor Mamdani and his crew billions of taxpayer dollars for their Socialist agenda. That only whetted the alligators’ appetite for more. Now the governor is on the menu.
State Attorney General Letitia James was caught off guard by the success of the Mamdani acolytes. James was cheering him on when he won the mayoralty, but was seething over Tuesday’s results. She told CNN that “Some of the candidates that he supported are individuals who do not understand the politics of New York City, the cultural differences from district to district, who have not been part of the history.” The political threats aimed at Hochul by mad-dog leftists are almost enough to make you feel sorry for her.
Almost. The hitch is that Hochul has only herself to blame.
What to watch next: whether Hochul changes course or continues trying to satisfy a crew that, by all evidence, will never be satisfied. The primaries are over. The general election is in November.
The alligators are still hungry.
