Governor's race: Where Hochul, Blakeman stand on issues

Energy bills, data centers, immigration, taxes and tolls.

Gov. Kathy Hochul and Republican rival Bruce Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, differ on many more things than just President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani — even if they have been figures in this campaign and others around the country.

Here are some key issues that have shaped the campaign and help differentiate the candidates:

Taxes, economy

Hochul has rebuffed progressives’ call for raising taxes on the wealthy and implemented a tax-rate reduction for middle- and lower-income households. At the same time, the state budget has grown from $220 billion in 2022 to $277 billion currently; a lot of it tied to federal spending and aid. She touts a huge economic development deal with Micron to spend $100 billion to build a complex of computer chip factories near Syracuse. She blames Trump's tariffs on Canada and other policies for driving up costs for New Yorkers.

Blakeman says he wants to eliminate income taxes on the first $50,000 earned for single filers and the first $100,000 earned by joint filers. He hasn’t said what offsetting spending cuts he’d make, other than slashing Medicaid by tackling fraud. He says New Yorkers' costs were sky-high before Trump took office, so Hochul can’t blame the president. He also says his record shows he cut taxes and prevented property-tax hikes as Nassau County executive.

Energy, environment

Hochul supports wind and energy power and criticized Trump for blocking projects. But she also slowed down the state’s timeline for phasing in green energy sources, angering some environmentalists. She’s proposing permitting New York’s first nuclear power plant in generations as a way to meet energy demands. She sent households a utility rebate check this fall of up to $200, an idea first proposed by Assembly Republicans.

Blakeman says he’d end the practice of earmarking money to bankroll future green energy projects because it is unclear they’ll be accomplished, and would return a $2 billion stockpile to taxpayers. He says this would help achieve his goal of cutting energy bills in half, though he has offered few other details of how he'd accomplish that. He’s for nuclear energy and would end the ban on fracking for natural gas. As with data centers, he says bans and moratoriums take away local control.

Immigration

Hochul has said she isn’t opposed to federal agents detaining migrants with criminal records, but she’s backed a package of laws to enhance protections for those in the country without legal status. Chiefly, she signed a law banning local and state law enforcement cooperation on civil immigration matters with federal authorities. She says the Trump administration's enforcement has far overstepped what it promised.

Blakeman, as county executive, backed civil enforcement agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. He says New York shouldn’t be a sanctuary state for asylum seekers and those living in the country illegally while saying he wants to see a federal guest worker program. He says the county's cooperation with ICE has been beneficial.

Crime, criminal justice

Blakeman says the state needs tougher criminal justice laws, even though crime rates have fallen since 2022. He says he would try to repeal a law, passed in 2019, that limits the use of bail to detain people accused of most misdemeanor crimes. He also said he'd try to repeal a law that raised the age for a person to be tried as an adult in New York to 18, and another restricting the use of long-term solitary confinement in state prisons.

Hochul touts a reduction in crime since the pandemic ended, along with financial investments in subway safety and gun violence prevention. She’s signed a law that would block the sale of 3D printers in the state that have the capacity for printing guns. She signed a law strengthening the state's Red Flag law, which enables authorities to confiscate firearms if a person poses a potential threat to himself or others.

Data centers, AI

Hochul imposed a one-year moratorium on large-scale data centers in July. Her executive order requires future data centers to generate their own energy or pay a premium to access the state’s grid. It also mandates that they pay into a fund for local infrastructure and services. She signed the Responsible AI Safety and Education (RAISE) Act, which gives New York the most stringent regulations on artificial intelligence, along with California. The provisions include forcing companies to disclose their safety protocols in their models and quickly report safety incidents.

Blakeman has indicated he is more open to large-scale data centers, arguing New York can’t afford to stifle a growing industry. Blakeman has said Hochul's moratorium takes away local control, and he would leave the decision up to local officials on whether to welcome data centers. He has said little on AI regulation and has drawn fire for using AI to create parodies of Hochul for campaign ads.

Abortion

Blakeman is the first GOP gubernatorial candidate in New York State in more than a generation who supports abortion rights.

Hochul has been a strong supporter, including signing a law blocking anti-abortion states from prosecuting women who come to New York for abortion services.

Other issues

Blakeman says he'd undo congestion pricing, the extra toll on cars driving into central Manhattan. He says he'd hold up a budget deal with the State Legislature unless it included his income-tax and utility bill cuts.

Hochul touts her ban on cellphone use in schools and boosting funding and eligibility for childcare and pre-kindergarten and free lunch programs.

Newsday's Steve Hughes contributed to this story.