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NY progressives have found a way to vote for Hochul, with an asterisk
By
Walter Wuthmann
Published Oct 30, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
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Andres Kudacki/Getty Images
By
Walter Wuthmann
Published Oct 30, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
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Some progressive Democrats who are dragging their feet to the polls to vote for Gov. Kathy Hochul have landed on a solution: Follow Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s lead and vote for her on the Working Families Party ballot line.
Hochul, a moderate who’s facing a challenge from Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, appears twice on the ballot: as a Democrat and as the pick of the progressive third party.
Michael Lange, a political analyst and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, said casting a vote on the WFP line is a way for fellow lefties to "have your cake and eat it, too.”
“ It's a way to show support for the left and the institutional left while also voting for a not-super-lefty-big-progressive Democrat,” Lange said.
That’s exactly what Corey Hillsey of Greenpoint did on a recent weekday morning during early voting.
“It sends a signal that we are looking for more change than what the Democratic Party brought us for the past 250 years,” said Hillsey, who identifies as a progressive Democrat and an enthusiastic supporter of the mayor, outside the McCarren Park polling site.
New York progressives have long cast ballots for the WFP, which supports causes like raising the minimum wage and universal healthcare, in an attempt to push centrist candidates further left. In 2020, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she voted for the Biden-Harris ticket on the WFP line.
Hochul and Mamdani have struck up a powerful alliance in the 10 months since the mayor took office, launching a new free childcare program for 2-year-olds. The governor has also made a point of defending the mayor from allegations of antisemitism and personal attacks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mamdani is reciprocating that support by campaigning for the governor across the five boroughs.
The mayor is hugely popular in New York City – a recent Siena poll found he had a 69% approval rating. Hochul needs city voters to turn out for her in big numbers if she’s going to take a commanding lead against Blakeman.
When Mamdani cast his own ballot last Saturday, on the first day of early voting, he told reporters he voted for Hochul on the WFP line.
New York is one of a handful of states with fusion voting, a system where candidates can appear on the ballot lines of multiple parties. Parties must receive more than 2% of the total vote to keep their place on the ballot in future elections, and all votes are counted toward the total, regardless of the party line.
Blakeman appears on the Republican, Conservative and Vote Affordable party lines.
Many political observers credit the WFP with helping Hochul win four years ago when polls showed a tight race against Republican challenger Lee Zeldin. In the end, Hochul’s roughly 325,000-vote margin of victory included about 250,000 ballots cast on the WFP line.
Since then, the party has been critical of her rollbacks to state climate policy and her reluctance to raise taxes on the rich.
Earlier this year, the WFP flirted with backing her primary challenger, Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado. But after a “rigorous and animated debate” at its statewide convention, the party chose not to endorse either candidate, depriving Delgado of much needed fuel for his insurgent campaign.
Now the WFP has thrown its weight behind Hochul in the general election.
“ We've been happy to work with the governor to actually deliver on universal childcare, on data center moratoriums, on a pretty extensive immigrant protection package,” WFP Deputy Director Cori Marquis said in an interview.
Marquis said choosing to vote for Hochul on the WFP line communicates that voters want to see more action on progressive priorities. It means backing “ the same candidate, but a stronger message,” she said.
While the WFP has worried about not meeting the 2% threshold in past cycles, Marquis said it's “less concerned” this year.
Lange, the political analyst and DSA member, said he planned to vote for Hochul on the WFP line. “I would say the vast majority of my peers would, too,” he said.
As for Hochul, she told a reporter from City & State she didn’t care whether people voted for her on the Democratic or WFP lines.
"OK by me,” the governor said while leaving a Brooklyn Pizza shop over the weekend. “As long as they vote."
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Walter Wuthmann
Walter Wuthmann is a reporter covering public safety and the legal system.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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