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New York’s organized labor looks to regroup after string of political defeats
By
Jimmy Vielkind
Published Jul 23, 2026
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Jimmy Vielkind/Gothamist
By
Jimmy Vielkind
Published Jul 23, 2026
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This column originally appeared in The Politics Brief, our weekly newsletter on the people, power and policies that shape New Yorkers' lives.
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Organized labor's political muscle in New York is looking atrophied following several defeats of its preferred candidates – including the 2025 Democratic primary for New York City mayor and several high-profile congressional primaries last month.
Big unions with thousands of members like the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council 1199 SEIU and 32BJ all backed Adriano Espaillat and Antonio Reynoso for seats in Congress. Both men lost to challengers from the Democratic Socialists of America.
Capital District Area Labor Federation Executive Director Mark Emanatian said unions are aware endorsements don’t always trickle down, so canvassers talking to union members this year will be taking an extra beat when they knock on doors.
“We have Democratic Party members in the unions, Republican, and lots of people not registered,” he said at a recent rally in Albany for Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul. “What we want to do this year is to go talk to them at their doors and say, ‘How's life treating you? What do you think we should do collectively to make this thing change?’”
Outside the rally, a dozen members of the Transport Workers Union Local 100 held signs that said Hochul wasn’t a friend of labor. The union is upset the governor hasn’t helped settle its contract with the MTA and didn’t intervene to avoid a strike earlier this year that shut down the Long Island Rail Road for three days.
Alexander Kemp, the local’s administrative vice president, said, “It's not a question about whether we can move the needle. It's a question about who we move the needle for.”
“The truth is that we've gotten a lot of promises from Democrats, and through the years they've fell short,” he said. “So then when we go to our membership and say, ‘Hey, by the way, what do you think about this primary?’ They go, ‘Well, we're not moved by anybody because the Democrats have consistently went back on their word.’”
Hochul’s campaign said it’s proud of its union endorsements. Its backers include the HTC, the Civil Service Employees Association and New York State United Teachers. The governor is planning a major labor rally in the coming weeks.
“Together, we will earn New Yorkers’ support and turn out the vote this fall,” campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said.
Those unions have a mixed track record that predates last month’s primaries. HTC, for example, endorsed Andrew Cuomo in the 2025 mayoral primary before pivoting to back Zohran Mamdani in the general election.
HTC President Rich Maroko said the union won other victories in state-level races in the last Democratic primary. Polling among his members indicates more than 90% follow the endorsements of union leaders.
“When we focus in on a particular race, we really make a difference,” he said. “And certainly, we’re going to be focused on these statewide races.”
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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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