NYS Democratic Primary Updates

Several NYS municipalities held primaries on Tuesday, June 24th the most noteworthy of which resulted in a primary night concession speech by former New York Govenor Andrew Cuomo to Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani as the winner of the Democratic primary for NYC mayor. Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani unexpectedly beat the former Governor by 7 points in the first round of ranked choice voting. Media reports indicate that Cuomo is weighing the feasibility of running as an independent in the general election. The ballot will also include incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, who dodged the Democratic primary and will run on an independent line, and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa.

State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal is on pace to win the Democratic primary for Manhattan Borough President and will likely win election to that office in November leaving his longtime NYS Senate seat open.

In Upstate mayoral races, Albany City Auditor Dorcey Applyrs handily won the Democratic primary for Albany Mayor with 52% of the vote. Dan Cerutti, the next closest challenger, had 28% of the vote. Applyrs is positioned to go on to be Albany’s first Black mayor. In Buffalo, State Senator Sean Ryan secured the Democratic nomination with 47% of the vote, beating out acting Mayor Chris Scanlon. However, Scanlon may run on an independent line. Assuming Ryan goes on to win the general election, there will be another vacant seat in the NYS Senate. In Rochester, incumbent Mayor Malik Evans won the nomination with 57% of the vote overcoming Mary Lupien, the next closest challenger. In Syracuse, Deputy Mayor Sharon Owens took the nomination with 62% of the vote. She would be Syracuse’s first Black mayor if she goes on to win the general election.

Medical Aid in Dying Passes Both Houses

The Medical Aid in Dying Act (“MAID”), sponsored by Assemblymember Amy Paulin and Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal (A.136/S.138) was passed by the Senate this week by a vote of 35-27. This legislation was previously passed by the Assembly at the end of April by a vote of 81-67. This legislation has been pending for 10 years and allows the terminally ill with six months or less to live to be prescribed and self-administer drugs to end their life. Proponents of the bill argue the bill promotes personal autonomy in allowing the terminally ill to die with dignity, if they so choose. Opponents of the bill have characterized it as a disrespect for life. It is unclear where Governor Hochul stands on the issue. If signed by the Governor, New York would be the 12th state in the nation to allow this practice.

Session Calendar

The 2025 session calendar is winding down fast as members hurry to advance their priority legislation. On the Senate side there are 7 session days left. In the Assembly there are at least 9 session days left as Speaker Heastie has extended the calendar through June 17 to make up for the late budget. Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins has said the Senate will stick to the regularly scheduled calendar and plans to end on June 12.

Enacted Budget

Last week, the $254 billion 2025-2026 NYS budget was enacted over 5 weeks past the April 1st deadline making it the latest budget in 15 years. With less than a month left in the regular legislative session, both houses will be focused on negotiating and passing priority bills.  Among the high-profile bills under consideration: potential reform to the CDPAP program, legislation to allow medical aid in dying, a slate of prison reform bills in response to the deaths of incarcerated individuals and extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation that seeks to mandate manufacturer’s responsibilities for packaging reduction, recycling and reuse.

NYS Budget Update 

On Thursday, the Legislature passed a tenth budget extender (A.8115/S.7707) allowing for emergency appropriations through Wednesday, May 7. Assembly Ways and Means Chair Gary Pretlow indicated this should be the last budget extender before a final budget is passed. Senate Finance Chair Liz Krueger reiterated that she really hopes budget bills are printed and ready to be voted on by Monday of next week or shortly then after, but could not confirm for certain.

Despite Governor Hochul’s announcement on Monday that a general budget agreement had been reached, a handful of issues still need to be ironed out including school aid, several housing issues, the question of whether the State’s unemployment insurance debt owed to the federal government will be paid off, and DOCCS reform. The DOCCS reforms being negotiated include expanding early releases based on merit time and lowering the age a correctional officer can work from 21 to 18 to address the shortage of workers after the weekslong strikes. Additionally, the Governor is now seeking the authority to cut up to $2 billion in state spending without legislative approval to be able to respond swiftly to emergency situations like increased costs caused by tariffs and federal cuts to state aid.

NYC Mayoral Race Update

Former Governor Andrew Cuomo continues to hold a commanding lead in the polls for NYC mayor with 34% of voters supporting him followed by Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani with 16% of voters supporting the Assemblymember. The rest of the contenders all polled in the single digits. Cuomo’s lead comes despite a technical error denying him millions in public matching funds, which has since been addressed. Mamdani raked in $4 million in matching funds, the largest amount any mayoral candidate has received during this election cycle.

Cuomo faced another setback this week after AI software, ChatGPT, was cited in a section of his housing plan and incoherent text was found throughout the plan, leading his rivals to criticize his use of the AI software on one of the most important policy issues NYC faces. A spokesperson for Cuomo affirmed ChatGPT was not used to craft actual policy, but instead for grammar and spelling, defending the use of the software.

Budget Update 

Yesterday the Legislature passed a second budget extender (A7635/S7156) allowing for emergency appropriations through Monday, April 7 as the April 3 deadline for the first budget extender was not met. Governor Hochul’s policy priorities are holding up the budget process as parties are still dug in on issues like discovery reform, involuntary commitment, as well as a potential mask ban in cases where one is masked while threatening violence, which was not included in the Governor’s initial budget proposal. Senate Finance Chair Liz Krueger recently expressed frustration with policy taking up all the air with negotiations as she told Politico “We’re not even discussing numbers. She’s obsessed with her policy, and she doesn’t even want to talk about the other stuff. It’s frustrating.”

Next week will be the last chance to wrap up the budget before the scheduled two-week legislative break to observe Passover and Easter. While it is still possible the budget will be voted on before the break, there is a chance these negotiations could be extended further.

We will continue to keep you updated as negotiations proceed.