Hochul announces Benjamin as pick for lieutenant governor – KIRO 7 News Seattle

NEW YORK – (AP) – New York Governor Kathy Hochul introduced Senator Brian Benjamin in the Senator’s Harlem district on Thursday as her election as lieutenant governor, where the two pledged to work together to tackle the ongoing pandemic and COVID -19 help get into the pockets of New Yorkers.

Hochul, the former lieutenant governor, took office on Tuesday after Andrew Cuomo’s resignation in a sexual harassment scandal. Hochul, who will run in the Democratic governor’s primary in June, and Benjamin spoke on Thursday with long-time Cuomo allies who eventually asked him to step down: Rev. Al Sharpton and NAACP New York State Conference President Hazel Dukes.

Benjamin will be sworn in “right after Labor Day,” said Hochul.

The governor said New York would hold special elections in November to occupy Benjamin’s Senate seat in Harlem. The Democrats are expected to retain their super majority in the state Senate.

“I would like to thank the entire Harlem Village for helping create this young man who will help us lead the state into better days and prosperity,” Hochul told a cheering crowd of supporters.

Benjamin, 44, was born in Harlem Hospital and raised in Harlem as the son of Caribbean immigrants. He received his Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School. As a state legislature, he focused on criminal justice reform and recently helped enforce a law that criminalizes the use of police strangleholdings that result in injury or death.

“So many children walking down 125th Street need to know that this world is there for them,” he said, adding, “Our community needs the government to work.”

Hochul and Benjamin did not name Cuomo directly, but both vowed to introduce a new collaborative approach between state and local government in New York.

Benjamin called her an “integrated person” and added, “There is a lot you could tell about someone before they have this ultimate power.”

While the role of lieutenant governor in New York is largely ceremonial, Hochul was the second person in 13 years to become governor after stepping down.

Hochul stressed that Benjamin will serve as their “partner” and that they will “work side by side in the trenches”.

Benjamin promised to gain nationwide support for the new government’s policies and focus on issues ranging from homelessness to gun violence.

Benjamin’s New York roots could help support Hochul. The city provides more than a third of the state’s 13.4 million registered voters. And Benjamin’s legislative record could help her penetrate the party’s progressive wing, which could be crucial in a primary.

Benjamin ran unsuccessfully for the New York auditor that year. He serves as the Senate Senior Assistant Majority Leader and Chairman of the Budget and Revenue Committee.

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