This Tuesday the primary elections were held in the State of New York to elect the candidates nominated by the Democratic and Republican parties, who will compete for the positions of Governor and Lieutenant Governor on November 6.
And although Jumaane Williams and Ana María Archila launched an intense campaign to change the direction of the State leadership, competing for the positions of Governor and Lieutenant Governor, respectively, at the close of this edition, the numbers projected victory to the current Governor, Kathy Hochul and the Lieutenant Governor, Antonio Delgado. With 31% of the tables counted, Hochul was declared the winner, beating with 66% to Williams, who showed 21% and Congressman Thomas Suozzi, who had the %
The cumbias that adorned the activity where the current Ombudsman and the activist of Colombian origin awaited the results of the day, in Brooklyn, quarreled a bit with the faces of some attendees who began to look sad as Hochul and Delgado confirmed their first places.
For the position of Lieutenant Governor, Delgado won with 60%, while Archila had a 26.9%. Diana Reyna, the other Hispanic in the race showed a 13% of the votes.
After knowing the results, community leaders and organizations defending immigrants and vulnerable communities in the Big Apple called on the next possible rulers of New York, who will take office in January 66, commit to advancing a progressive agenda.
Listen to the needs of the most vulnerable
The cry, beyond urgent social investments, in health, education and protections for tenants, is that they listen to the needs of the most vulnerable and promote joint actions with the Legislature so that there can be effective changes.
This was stated by Yatziri Tovar, from the organization Make the Road Action, who assured that it is urgent that the next government in Albany works for the most needy communities and does not continue to turn a deaf ear before and urgent projects.
“Our hope is that finally our people, especially our immigrant people, black communities, tenants and workers, are included among the priorities of the State, Well, as we saw in the last legislative session, many of our needs were not heard”, said the activist. “We need the future governor to promote the investment of more money for our excluded workers, who can be a leader who pushes the passage of good cause legislation, which would protect many renters. We are just coming out of the pandemic and there are thousands of people who are returning to work and now face the possibility of being evicted from their homes by landlords who are raising the rent in an inhumane way.”
The former DACA beneficiary also warned that it is imperative that those who take the reins of New York from next year promote the approval of laws that have remained in the inkwell and that would improve the quality of life of millions of New Yorkers, such as health coverage for all and the “Health Act”.
Likewise, the young woman was clear in warning that regardless of who finally wins the position of Governor and Lieutenant Governor in November, community organizations will continue to fight for more equity, social justice and the most vulnerable New Yorkers receive the treatment they deserve.
“The desire was for there to be a new leadership in our state, it could have come to us at a good time with Jumaane Williams and Ana María Archila, who have been in the streets marching by our side, raising their voices for our needs, but with Hochul we will continue fighting for legislation to be passed that helps our communities”, said the activist, warning that with what the current Governor has shown so far, tougher battles are anticipated in Albany.
“We know that with her in the Governor’s Office the fight is going to be strong, but we are prepared to fight. We have done it since Covid began and we will continue to fight for our community to be prioritized, because the needs are still there and the political leaders will have to change.
Yesenia Mata, director of the organization La Colmena , of Staten Island, called on Governor Hochul to show signs of understanding more about the needs of the community, now that she eventually has the pass of the Democratic Party to have a full term of government.
Child Care Expansion
“Governor Hochul should include undocumented children in her child care expansion. Not only have undocumented parents been excluded on several occasions, even though they have been the backbone of New York’s economy during the pandemic, but now children are being excluded, “said the activist. “If the governor doesn’t do this, then what message is she giving to undocumented children?”
Murad Awawdeh, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition, insisted that it will be the responsibility of the candidates who won the nomination for the highest office in the State to direct their north towards the needs of New Yorkers most vulnerable.
“It is absolutely critical that all New Yorkers be able to thrive, regardless of their immigration status. Our leaders in Albany, including the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor, must stand up for our immigrant communities and end the demonization of immigrant New Yorkers who are the backbone,” said the activist, joining the call to greenlight bills urgent.
“Yes well they should start with the passage of the New York For All Act, the Access to Representation Act, Coverage4All and the expansion of language access, funding for legal services, and the Excluded Workers Fund, these should be treated as minimums.” Awawdeh said. “It is high time that our leaders equitably include our immigrant communities in the future of the state of New York.”
Diana Moreno of the organization NICE, described these elections as vital to define the future of the state and from the communities that have suffered the most from the impact of the pandemic and inequalities and urged the candidates who won the nomination to prioritize issues of support for immigrants, such as the expansion of the Funds for Excluded Workers.
“NICE helped thousands of our members apply for and receive this vital aid. We know it had a huge positive impact such as preventing eviction, helping pay off debts and putting food on the table for thousands of families. But the original funds were simply not enough,” said the community leader.
“After helping New Yorkers survive the worst of the pandemic through our essential work, and after suffering disproportionate health and economic impacts, immigrant families are still dealing with a very difficult situation and we need the support of the state government”, warned the NICE spokeswoman.
“After the failure of the federal government to pass a comprehensive immigration reform last year, and the decision of the Court that has just reversed the victory of the municipal vote in New York City, we immigrants have the support of our representatives at the state level to be able to move forward after such difficult years,” Moreno added.
Next November 6, Hochul will possibly have to face Lee Zeldin, who with him 45. 5% seemed to carry the broad anther for the Republican nomination, after beating Andrew Guilliani, who had a 26.2 % and Rob Astorino, with 19.8%.
Antonio Delgado, for his part, must face the former member of the NYPD Alison Esposito, who is the official candidate of the Republicans.
Ana María Archila assured that despite not having achieved the goal of winning the nomination for Vice Governor, the vote it was a triumph for the working communities it represents.
“Tonight is historic because we raise our voices for families, for immigrants, for workers and for the dignity”, said the candidate.
Preliminary results for the Democratic nomination for Governor
- Kathy Hochul: 66%
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- Diana Reyna: 13%
- Jumaane Williams: 21%
- Thomas Suozzi: 12%
Preliminary results for the Democratic nomination for Vice Governor
- Antonio Delgado: 60%
- Ana María Archila: 24.9%
Who competed for the position of Governor?
For the Democratic nomination, the current one faced each other in these primaries Governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, Congressman Tom Suozzi and the current Ombudsman, Jumaane Williams. Rob Astorino, Andrew Giuliani, Harry Wilson and Lee Zeldin competed for the Republican nomination
Who competed for the position of Lieutenant Governor?
Who is Antonio Delgado?
- He is the current Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York, after having been appointed to the position by Governor Hochul on May 3, after the resignation of Brian Benjamin due to accusations of alleged acts of corruption. Delgado was born and raised in the city of Schenectady, upstate New York, and his parents come from Cape Verde, Africa.
The Democratic politician from 45 years old, is a lawyer, attended Colgate University, in Hamilton, New York, and went on to law school at Harvard. Before becoming Lieutenant Governor, he was a congressman for the district