(Bloomberg) -- New York Republican Mike Lawler, who was just re-elected to Congress, said he’s weighing challenging the state’s Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul in 2026.
The congressman, who represents the 17th District in parts of the Hudson Valley, said he would look to capitalize on a shift in the electorate away from Democrats, who have lost support over undocumented immigration and criminal justice. He also blasted Hochul for reintroducing congestion pricing so soon after the election.
“We’ll take a look at it and at some point in the next year we’ll make a determination,” Lawler said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s Balance of Power. “You’re seeing New Yorkers make a rightward shift because they’re tired of the woke, radical policies that have really crippled New York.”
Lawler, 38, beat Democrat Mondaire Jones by 52% versus 46% earlier this month after flipping the seat in 2022 from Democrats by less than a percentage point. During this year’s election, Lawler distanced himself from his party’s stances on abortion and capitalized on Jones’ missteps that led him to alienate some of his progressive base by shifting to moderate positions.
New York will choose its governor in 2026 following a mixed picture for Democrats in the state. The party flipped three House seats, but saw President-elect Donald Trump make inroads with traditional Democratic constituencies, narrowing his margin of defeat.
--With assistance from Kailey Leinz and Joe Mathieu.
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