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Hochul, Blakeman offer opposing visions for jobs to stem New York exodus
By
Jimmy Vielkind
Published Oct 15, 2026
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Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
By
Jimmy Vielkind
Published Oct 15, 2026
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Kate Ebersbach spent her 20s working with horses in Upstate New York. But the pay was never enough to build a livelihood. At 32, Ebersbach moved back into her childhood home outside Syracuse. Although living with her parents isn't ideal, the arrangement made it possible for her to go back to school.
Ebersbach hopes a career change will allow her to get her own place.
New York State of Unaffordability
WNYC and Gothamist are publishing a series of podcasts and articles on the race for governor ahead of Election Day on Nov. 3. Upstate public radio stations are contributing to the series through the New York Public Radio News Network.
Look for further coverage throughout October.
Previous installments:
- NY's prison system is in crisis. It's driving staff away from the job.
- How NY candidates for governor plan to address the childcare affordability crisis
When she heard that Micron Technologies, a memory chip manufacturer, was building a massive factory in nearby Clay, she began studying electromechanical technology at Onondaga Community College.
“I actually looked up what they do in the semiconductor industry and fell in love with it and decided that that's what I wanted to do with my life,” Ebersbach said. “I wanted more money and stability, so I decided to switch careers.”
Some of Ebersbach’s former classmates from Baker High School faced a similar squeeze – working low-paying jobs close to home or moving to other states for better opportunities. Indeed, 1 million New Yorkers have moved across state lines since 2020, seeking more affordable living costs in places like Florida, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
This is the second installment of "New York State of Unaffordability," a podcast by WNYC and Gothamist that examines why. The four-part series explores the major economic hardships facing residents and highlights the very different solutions being offered by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and her Republican challenger, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.
Finding a good-paying job is one of those challenges, particularly in Upstate New York, where communities still grapple with the effects of deindustrialization. Syracuse's population shrank by more than a third between 1950 and 2020 as factories closed.
Hochul, who became governor in 2021 and is seeking a second full term, says she wants to reverse the economic decline that she witnessed growing up in Buffalo. She has directed billions of dollars to help Upstate New York's semiconductor industry. Micron, which has pledged to create 50,000 jobs, is in line to receive up to $5.5 billion in state incentives.
“This is the culmination of dreams that I've had for a long time,” the governor said in July during a concrete-pouring ceremony at the Micron site. “We're going to get thousands more people hired, create more opportunities for families, young people born in this community to be able to stay here and have jobs.”
Blakeman has said his approach to economic development would involve reducing regulations in order to help private companies stay and expand their operations.
He said he would legalize natural gas hydrofracking, which the state banned in 2014 over concerns about its effects on the environment, including New York City’s reservoirs. He’s also criticized the governor’s year-long moratorium on large data center developments.
“Creating jobs is very, very simple. You've got to make it inviting for businesses to locate here in New York state or remain in New York state,” Blakeman said in an interview. “An unfriendly atmosphere, a hostile atmosphere to businesses — that's why they're not locating here.”
Kate Ebersbach
Jimmy Vielkind/Gothamist
Blakeman’s campaign pointed to a study by the American Legislative Exchange Council, a right-leaning policy group, that ranked New York 50th for economic development climate, in part because New York City millionaires pay the highest combined state and local tax rate in the country.
Blakeman and his GOP allies have also argued that President Donald Trump and Republican Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon, not Hochul, deserve credit for the Micron project and other investments in domestic manufacturing.
Hochul’s aides have trumpeted news released in September showing New York’s gross domestic product grew nearly double the national average over the summer. The state's unemployment rate was 4.3% as of August, the most recent month available, slightly above the 4.1% nationwide average.
During a debate this week, Hochul said Blakeman supports unfettered industry, a charge the Nassau executive sharply denied.
“You want oil and gas rigs all over Upstate New York,” she said. “You want smokestacks everywhere."
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Jimmy Vielkind
Jimmy Vielkind covers how state government and politics affect people throughout New York. He has covered Albany since 2008, most recently as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Jimmy led a team of reporters that won a New York Press Club award for coverage of Andrew Cuomo’s downfall and was on a team that won a Gerald Loeb Award for coverage of Amazon’s HQ2 process. A native of the Capitol Region, Jimmy has two degrees in urban planning. His position is funded by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Reach Jimmy at [email protected].
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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