ALBANY — Gov. Kathy Hochul took a ceremonial oath of office Tuesday in an event packed with supporters from around the state to help usher in an era for New York after a decade of governance by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Tuesday’s midmorning swearing came hours after the state’s first woman governor was sworn into office shortly after midnight in a private ceremony.
“I want people to believe in government again,” Hochul said. “It’s important to me that people have faith … I take that very seriously.”
Hochul said she spoke with President Joe Biden Monday evening and he pledged his full support in helping New York counties recover from the weekend’s Tropical Storm Henri.
She said she plans to outline her plan to combat COVID-19 and its variants and to get aid to renters who lost income because of the pandemic. She also will announce more members of administration in an address later Tuesday.
She was flanked by her husband, William Hochul, an executive at the Delaware North concessions and gambling corporation and a former U.S. attorney in Buffalo from 2010 to 2016. He is officially New York’s “first gentleman.” They were joined by their two children, the governor’s father and her siblings.
Sitting in the front row were the legislative leaders — Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx). Afterward, Hochul conferred with them behind closed doors. She said that illustrates what will be a hallmark of her administration.
She also said she will meet with New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio. The legislative leaders and DeBlasio had clashed with Cuomo’s hard-charging style in the past.
“This is what collaboration looks like,” she said. “There will be no blindsiding.”
“Today is a new day for the State of New York,” said Sen. Shelley Mayer (D-Yonkers). “Governor Kathy Hochul is smart, tough, determined, with high ethical standards and a strong moral compass. She has served in local, county, state and federal government positions and values the insights and experiences of local leaders — listening before making decisions … I look forward to her leadership and a collaborative relationship between her and the members of the Senate and the Assembly.”
