Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado announced his campaign for governor of New York earlier this week. His bid pits him against Gov. Kathy Hochul, who selected him for lieutenant governor in 2022.

Delgado’s platform calls for initiatives like universal childcare and solutions to the statewide housing crisis, like a rental assistance program and greater investment in public housing. In a June 1 campaign video, he introduced his background and presented a broad policy vision, saying that New York needs “bold, decisive, transformational leadership.”

“It’s important for us to believe that democracy can work for the people,” he added. “There’s a reason why we are at the center of the Trump administration’s attack: we represent everything they want to tear down.”

In early February, Delgado did not commit to endorsing Hochul’s 2026 reelection bid when asked by Politico, saying his “focus is on governing right now.” On Feb. 24, Delgado announced he would not seek reelection with Hochul.

His campaign announcement comes as Hochul faces uncertain political standing. An April poll conducted by the Siena College Research Institute found that Hochul had a 44 to 43 percent approval rating, an improvement from her 40 to 50 percent approval rating in March. Still, 48 percent of registered voters would prefer to elect someone else as governor, compared to March’s 34 to 56 percent.

A Rhodes scholar born in Schenectady, New York, Delgado graduated from Harvard Law School and worked for years at a global law firm. In 2018, he beat six other candidates to become the Democratic nominee for New York’s 19th congressional district.

That November, Delgado defeated Rep. John Faso, the Republican incumbent elected in 2016, becoming the first person of color to represent upstate New York in Congress.

At the time, Ithaca and Binghamton were not part of the congressional district, then composed of counties in the Hudson Valley, the Capital region and the lower Mohawk Valley.

On Aug. 24, 2021, then-lieutenant Hochul became governor when Andrew Cuomo resigned after an investigation by the state attorney general’s office found he had sexually harassed 11 women. Two days later, she selected Brian Benjamin, a state senator representing parts of northern Manhattan, to be lieutenant governor.

Benjamin resigned in April 2022 after federal prosecutors charged him with a litany of campaign finance violations from his time as state senator, leading Hochul to pick Delgado as his replacement.

That August, Pat Ryan, a Democrat, narrowly beat Republican Marc Molinaro to temporarily fill Delgado’s congressional seat until the end of the year. Molinaro ran again and won the general election against Democrat Josh Riley under a new congressional map, with the 19th district now including all of Broome County.

Ryan won in the neighboring 18th district, defeating Republican Assemblyman Colin Schmitt. On Monday, Ryan announced his support for Hochul in an X post, calling her a “person of integrity” and a “fighter.”

As lieutenant governor, Delgado publicly disagreed with Hochul on several occasions. Last year, he called on former President Joe Biden to end his primary campaign, even as Hochul reiterated her support of Biden as the Democratic nominee.

In February, Delgado called on New York City Mayor Eric Adams to resign, leading a Hochul spokesperson to comment that Delgado “does not now and has not ever spoken on behalf of this administration.”

Delgado made several trips to the Binghamton area over the past year. In March, Delgado participated in a downtown protest against potential Medicaid cuts. One month earlier, Delgado ceremonially swore in State Sen. Lea Webb ‘04 for her second term.

Last November, Delgado spoke at a get-out-the-vote rally to boost support for local Democratic candidates. He was joined by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries ‘92, Webb, Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo MA ‘84 and Riley, who defeated Molinaro by around two points in the congressional race.

On Monday, the Democratic Governors Association released a statement supporting Hochul’s reelection bid.

“The Governor knows how to take on big fights and win for New York families — and her agenda is overwhelmingly popular with New Yorkers on both sides of the aisle,” said Meghan Meehan-Draper, the organization’s executive director. “The Democratic Governors Association is 100 percent behind Governor Hochul as she continues to deliver for New York, take on Donald Trump, and build the operation it will take to beat Republicans up and down the ballot in 2026.”

Some New York Republicans rumored to be considering a run against Hochul weighed in on Delgado’s primary challenge. Representatives Mike Lawler and Elise Stefanik issued statements calling Hochul “the worst Governor in America.” Stefanik added that Delgado’s primary bid is evidence Hochul “lost support” among Democrats and independent voters

In 2022, Hochul narrowly won reelection by 6.4 points. Former Vice President Kamala Harris won the state by 12.6 percent in 2024, a notable decline from Biden’s 23.2 percent victory in 2020.

Shortly after November’s election, Delgado wrote a guest opinion in The New York Times criticizing the Democratic Party’s “neoliberal era” and urging leaders to “challenge the systems and institutions that have caused Americans to lose faith in government.” Writing that “common sense should rule the day,” Delgado called on the party to address economic inequality while securing the Southern border and protecting “American workers from bad trade deals.”

“The powerful and well-connected have their champions,” Delgado said in the campaign video. “I’m running for governor to be yours.”