NY governor encourages Mamdani to focus on New York City instead of Israel

NEW YORK — New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Thursday encouraged New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to focus more on the city government and less on Israel.

Hochul was asked in an interview with the New York Times about Mamdani’s video statement last month acknowledging that he could not arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite his repeated vows to do so.

Mamdani’s statement, which was viewed hundreds of millions of times, included a series of incendiary claims against Israel, such as falsely stating that Netanyahu is a war criminal.

The video, along with Mamdani’s other broadsides against Israel, has sparked alarm among many New York Jews, who are targeted in hate crimes far more than any other group, including in an alleged stabbing days after Mamdani’s statement.

Hochul was asked by the New York Times if Mamdani’s anti-Israel rhetoric could make Jewish New Yorkers uneasy.

“I encourage him to — ‘Let’s focus on blocking and tackling of city government,’” she said, using a football metaphor that refers to focusing on basic, routine daily tasks for success.

She mentioned her shared focus with Mamdani on issues like child care and housing.

“That’s where I believe the main focus should be,” Hochul added.

Hochul also vowed in the interview to “throw my body against any antisemitism.”

“I have, and I will,” she said.

Hochul is a moderate Democrat, while Mamdani is on the far left, putting them at odds on some issues, although the two have maintained a cooperative relationship, and Hochul supported Mamdani during his run for mayor.

Hochul has criticized Israel’s war in Gaza, but is generally friendly to Israel, has a positive relationship with mainstream Jewish groups, and has pushed for legislation meant to protect Jews.

She marched in New York City’s annual Israel parade in May, for example, while Mamdani refused to participate.

Hochul has criticized Mamdani’s anti-Israel rhetoric before.

Late last year, she shot down Mamdani’s pledge to arrest Netanyahu, saying, “The New York City mayor does not have the power to do that,” while distancing herself from other anti-Israel statements from the mayor.

Jewish leaders and some other elected officials in the state have repeatedly called on Mamdani to tone down his anti-Israel rhetoric.

Hate crimes against Jews and some other groups have increased since Mamdani took office at the start of the year, although the proportion of antisemitic hate crimes has remained relatively steady.

Jews in the city have been disproportionately targeted in hate crimes for years, including under the previous mayor, Eric Adams, a staunch supporter of Israel.

Last month, 70% of all hate crimes in the city targeted Jews, according to the NYPD.

Hochul is running for reelection against Republican Bruce Blakeman, who has taken a position to her right on Israel and Jewish issues, and repeatedly criticized Mamdani and Hochul’s relationship with the mayor.

New York State voters are mostly Democrats, giving Hochul an advantage in the election. The majority of the state’s residents live outside New York City, though, where Mamdani’s far-left politics are less popular.

“I am running for governor because we can’t afford to have four more years of Comrade Kathy with three more years of Mamdani the Commie,” Blakeman said in May. “We need a Jewish Zionist whose grandparents were World War II veterans in the American military.”

Hochul holds a wide lead over Blakeman, according to polls, although that lead appears to have narrowed somewhat in recent weeks.