Ten weeks before Election Day, Gov. Kathy Hochul is well positioned with a $20 million war chest and Democratic voter advantage in New York. Despite the state’s rebound from the pandemic under her leadership, her approval ratings have struggled to exceed 50 percent amid ongoing concerns over energy bills, rent, and living costs.

Criticized from both left and right, she trails Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman by 10 points in the latest Siena poll. In a Times interview, Hochul reflected on her tenure beginning during the pandemic’s depths, asserting she restored public confidence in New York. She contrasted the early days—marked by Cuomo’s resignation, mass Covid deaths, rising crime, and deserted Midtown—with today’s recovery: falling crime, rebounding employment and tourism, and renewed public joy, exemplified by her visit to Coney Island where she danced with local performers at Ruby’s Bar and Grill.

Hochul highlighted her pragmatic, modest style, contrasting it with her predecessor’s dominance, and emphasized her identity as the first “mom governor,” citing expansions of the child tax credit, paid prenatal leave, free school meals, school cellphone bans, and a $12 billion investment in child care access. She also noted her resistance to Trump-era federal overreach and efforts to shield New Yorkers from deportation campaigns and funding cuts.