(Chris Wade, The Center Square) Ending weeks of speculation, Gov. Kathy Hochul has endorsed Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani in New York City’s mayoral race, with polls showing him with a double-digit lead.

In an op-ed published Sunday by the New York Times, Hochul said she believes he’s the best candidate to run the nation’s largest city despite her disagreements with the Queens assemblyman over his controversial proposals. 

“In our conversations, I heard a leader who shares my commitment to a New York where children can grow up safe in their neighborhoods and where opportunity is within reach for every family,” Hochul, a Democrat, wrote in her endorsement. “I heard a leader who is focused on making New York City affordable — a goal I enthusiastically support.” 

Hochul’s surprise announcement ends weeks of speculation. It puts new pressure on other top Democrats withholding their backing of Mamdani, notably House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, both New Yorkers. Hochul has been reluctant to back a candidate in the mayor’s race since Mamdani shocked the state’s political establishment by trouncing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary. 

Mamdani’s campaign has focused on affordability and progressive agenda items like free city buses, government-run grocery stores, and taxing the city’s wealthiest residents. That’s drawn criticism from fellow Democrats and New York City business leaders. The 33-year-old Democratic socialist has also been criticized for his previous attempts to defund the NYPD, though he has recently distanced himself from those comments.  

In a statement, Mamdani thanked Hochul for her “support in unifying our party” and for her work “standing up to President Trump, securing free lunch meals for our kids, and expanding access to childcare.” 

“Governor Hochul has made affordability the centerpiece of her work,” he said. “I look forward to fighting alongside her to continue her track record of putting money back in New Yorkers’ pockets and building a safer and stronger New York City where no one is forced to leave just so they can afford to raise a family. There’s so much work left to do, and our movement is only growing stronger.”

In her endorsement, Hochul took a swipe at her former boss Cuomo — whom she worked under as lieutenant governor before he resigned in 2021 — and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, both of whom have been accused of colluding with Trump administration officials to defeat Mamdani.  “Anyone who accepts his tainted influence, or benefits from it, is compromised from the start,” Hochul wrote.

But the endorsement drew criticism from other candidates in the crowded race. Republican Curtis Sliwa’s campaign criticized the governor’s endorsement as “nonsense” and said the GOP nominee and Guardian Angel’s founder is the best choice for New York City mayor. 

“The worst governor in America just endorsed the worst candidate for mayor. They deserve each other,” Sliwa campaign spokesperson Daniel Kurzyna said in a statement. “New Yorkers see through the backroom politics and know Curtis Sliwa is fighting for them, not the insiders.” 

New York Republican Chair Ed Cox blasted Hochul for endorsing an “avowed communist and anti-Semite for Mayor of the City of New York,” calling it a “stunning act of political cowardice.” 

He said the endorsement means Hochul has “just denied Israel’s right to exist, legalized prostitution, voted to throw open the jails and defund the NYPD, and said New York should be a socialist city.” 

“It’s no wonder Kathy Hochul’s New York continues to lead the nation in outmigration: New Yorkers are fleeing Democrats’ worst-in-the-nation tax and regulatory regime, as well as their open embrace of extremism,” Cox said.