ALBANY, New York — Rep. Ritchie Torres will conduct a tour of New York as he considers a run for governor — and sharply criticizes fellow Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul as a legal responsibility on par with President Joe Biden earlier than he dropped his presidential bid.
Torres has not set a date for the journey or established the place he’ll journey. However visits to communities exterior of his Bronx Home district might elevate his profile in upstate and suburban areas, the place he isn’t well-known.
“I’ll confess that I’m hardly an knowledgeable on each county in New York. However I stay up for touring all through the state,” he advised POLITICO. “I hope to embark on a listening tour and discover out in regards to the wants of New York state.”
In an interview, Torres gave a withering evaluation of Hochul’s political standing and her method to the job because the state’s chief govt.
He drew a comparability to Democrats’ efforts this summer time to stress Biden to drop his reelection marketing campaign — a push that solely intensified after a poor debate efficiency with President-elect Donald Trump.
“I worry that Hochul stands out as the new Biden,” Torres mentioned. “She could also be in denial in regards to the depth of her vulnerabilities in 2026. Within the case of Biden, as a substitute of talking out early, we waited till it was too late. Let’s keep away from repeating historical past and let’s keep away from sleepwalking towards catastrophe and defeat.”
Torres has lately stepped up his criticism of Hochul, who suffers from basement-level favorable ratings with New York voters statewide.
He worries the governor is less than the duty of successful a second full time period as GOP Rep. Mike Lawler additionally weighs a bid for governor. Hochul “might simply lose to Mike Lawler” in 2026, Torres mentioned.
A Republican has not gained a gubernatorial election since George Pataki secured a 3rd time period in 2002. Since then, Democrats have achieved a statewide grip on energy, controlling all branches of presidency in Albany and each U.S. Senate seats.
However there are indicators that Democrats, who maintain a greater than 2-to-1 enrollment benefit over Republicans, are slipping with voters. Hochul might not have the ability to reverse the occasion’s issues, he mentioned.
“The case may very well be made that we’d like a Democrat who can win a normal election, not an unpopular Democratic incumbent who’s in grave hazard of shedding to a Republican for the primary time in 30 years,” Torres mentioned.
Trump’s exhibiting in blue New York — the Republican received 43 p.c of the vote towards Vice President Kamala Harris — alarms Torres. Trump carried out higher in almost all corners of the state in contrast with 2020 — together with in Torres’ district.
Hochul herself gained in 2022 by solely 6 factors over Republican Lee Zeldin.
“The blue wall in New York state reveals actual indicators of cracking,” mentioned Torres, a average who shares Hochul’s staunch help for Israel.
His concern with the governor will not be primarily based on ideology however with the notion of competence. He took purpose at her choice to pause the congestion pricing toll plan in June solely to revive it after Election Day.
“This displays the sort of erratic and chaotic governance one would count on from a Trump presidency,” he mentioned. “It’s embarrassing.”
Torres will not be a declared candidate, and in his interview with POLITICO, he additionally mentioned individuals have raised to him the potential of working for New York Metropolis mayor amid the authorized troubles going through incumbent Eric Adams.
He is additionally not the one New York Democrat who’s voiced considerations over the occasion’s possibilities in two years towards Republicans in a statewide race.
New York Metropolis Council Member Chi Ossé this week posted on X that Hochul is in peril of losing in 2026. And Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine warned over the summer time that Democrats have been in peril of shedding their statewide dominance if they didn’t shift course to mirror the considerations of working individuals — a chorus that has solely grown louder throughout the occasion nationally after Harris’ loss to Trump.
Nonetheless, Hochul has strengths she will draw on lower than two years out from her reelection bid.
She constructed out the state Democratic Committee’s political infrastructure to help swing district Home candidates, and the hassle labored: Democrats flipped 4 seats (a determine that features Tom Suozzi’s February particular election win).
Hochul is predicted to leverage that new political muscle in 2026, drawing on lists of volunteers and voter information in key areas of New York like Lengthy Island.
“Gov. Hochul is proud to have led New York Democrats in a profitable election cycle, giving Congressman Torres 4 new Democratic colleagues in Congress,” Hochul spokesperson Jen Goodman mentioned. “The governor stays targeted on delivering outcomes for New Yorkers, from driving down crime to reducing prices for working households.”
A model of this story first appeared in New York Playbook.
