Q & A: Stefanik says her 2026 gubernatorial bid to unseat Hochul is an ‘existential battle’ to save NY, ‘Western Civilization’ from socialism

The 2026 New York gubernatorial election will be “existential battle” to save New York and all of Western civilization from socialism, Rep. Elise Stefanik (D-NY) told The Post’s Rich Calder during a nearly 20-minute interview this week, excerpted below, discussing her decision to challenge Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Q: Under the state Constitution, governors could suspend or even remove elected officials from office.  Is that something you’d consider doing with socialist NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani if elected governor?

A: If elected governor, I will follow the New York State Constitution, which lays out a process. It is not based upon ideology. The Constitution is very specific about that process. . . . When we win, I will follow the Constitution and make an assessment.

Q: How do you get around the fact that President Trump is not popular in parts of New York – especially in New York City? Hochul is already using your alliance with Trump to raise cash from panicked Democrats.

A: Hochul’s campaign is helping us turn out low-propensity voters, which will be a key part of our electoral strategy. The reality is Kathy Hochul got about 3.1 million votes in New York and Donald Trump got nearly 3.6 million.  This race is going to be won on voter turnout, and it’s going to be won on a referendum on Kathy Hochul. . . .  Her name is on the ballot. My name will be on the ballot, and she is less popular than Donald Trump is in New York State.

Q: If you beat Hochul, do you plan to reverse congestion pricing?

A: Oh, absolutely. That is going to be a major part of my platform. It is a commuter tax. It is a tax on working New Yorkers, and it’s devastating the economy of New York City.

Q: Why did you decide to enter the governor’s race – and why now?

A: I am running to save New York. We have seen two decades of Democrats in the governor’s seat, and what has happened in New York? It’s become the most unaffordable state in the nation and one of the most unsafe. On the affordability issue, because of Kathy Hochul’s failed leadership, we are the highest tax state in the nation. We have the highest energy prices, the highest utility cost, highest rent, highest grocery bills. We also rank at the bottom when it comes to friendliness of doing business in New York.. . . And on the issue of safety, because of failed bail reform, every single day, there are violent crimes being committed against law-abiding New Yorkers. . . . New Yorkers are outraged, and so I decided to run because I want to save the state that I love. I’m born and raised in upstate New York, and I understand that traditionally New York is a Democrat state. But when I first ran for Congress over a decade ago, no one thought I could win. It was a Democrat seat. Republicans had struggled for many cycles to win it. . . . I went on to win the most expensive primary in the country, and I won the general election by over 20 points, shattering expectations, and we did that by building a coalition of Republicans, independents, and Democrats. And since then, we’ve built an apparatus where I put up some of the largest margins in the Northeast and the highest voter turnout of any congressional district in the state.

Q: You’ve said that a lot of support for your gubernatorial bid has come from Dems – can you expand on that?

A: Kathy Hochul is seeing the same polling that we are, and that is: among registered Democrats, she cannot make 50%. That is why she endorsed Mamdani and bowed to him to try to coalesce registered Democrats and try to appease the far left. It was a politically toxic and devastating decision because it puts into hyperdrive traditional Democrats, independents and Republicans who are opposing her. And if you look at Mamdani’s win, while he won a three-way race and got slightly above 50%, what it means to me is that it was an underperformance,  traditionally, for the Democratic nominee. They’re usually in the high 60s or 70s in New York City. . . .  Hochul’s approval ratings have cratered. Some of her biggest bundlers and donors are now my bundlers and donors, which will be revealed when we do our end-of-the-year filing. . . . They want a strong governor who can represent common sense values for all of New York, to save New York City, and save the rest of New York State.

Q: Do you think Mamdani being mayor helps your campaign, and Republicans nationwide,  assuming he bombs in office?

A: I want New York City to succeed. It’s the most important and most meaningful city, not just in the state, but in the entire world. . . . We need a healthy, safe, vibrant, capitalist New York City. We also need a New York City where families are able to thrive and not be crushed by high taxation, regulatory burdens, as well as this “defund the police” nonsense that makes New York increasingly unsafe. So I’m going to continue holding Hochul accountable every single day for her refusal to condemn Mamdani’s positions. There’s not a single statement he has made that Hochul has condemned. She didn’t condemn his … calling for “defunding the police.” She didn’t condemn when he said Hamas should not lay down their arms. She didn’t condemn when he campaigned with the unindicted co-conspirator of the World Trade Center bombings in 1993. She didn’t condemn when he said he wants to abolish private property. . . . And, mark my words, she will break her promise that she said she’s not going to raise taxes because [the far left will] extract it from her.

Q: But do you think his success or failures will help your campaign?

A: Yeah, we’re holding him accountable, and it’s going to expose what Kathy Hochul has brought to New York City. At the time when it was most important for the governor to show strength and common sense, she anointed [Mamdani] by endorsing him.  . . . So, yes, if Mamdani fails, we’re going to make sure that voters know there is a better way to have a strong governor who brings common sense and is focused on making New York affordable and making it safe.

Q: Do you see yourself running not only against Hochul – but also Mamdani? And is the race a battle to prevent the soul of New York turning socialist?

A: This is an existential battle for New York and for Western civilization. This is the most important election that New York State will have had in my lifetime, much like 2024 was a historically important [presidential] election. This is going to be a referendum on Kathy Hochul, and Kathy Hochul is tied lock, stock and barrel to Mamdani — every position, every catastrophic mistake he makes. You’re going to see an increase of crime in New York City. You’re already seeing a mass exodus and a fleeing of businesses, of families who, No. 1, are fearful of Mamdani — rightfully so — and No. 2, see his proposal of raising taxes, making New York even more unaffordable than it already is.

Q: You called Hochul “the worst governor in the USA.” Do you feel Mamdani will be the worst mayor in the USA?

A: Oh, yes, absolutely. And Kathy Hochul has earned that label. It stuck for a reason, and it’s because she’s an accidental governor. Let’s look back at Kathy Hochul’s career. She was a town board member of Hamburg. Hamburg, by the way, just flipped Republican. She was a one-term member of Congress who was fired by her constituents. She was lieutenant governor because [ex-Gov. Andrew] Cuomo wanted a weak lieutenant governor [from] the western part of New York State. And then she’s an accidental governor who happened to be on the ballot because Cuomo stepped down in [2021]. She was an unknown generic Democrat in 2022, and [Republican] Lee Zeldin came within six points [of beating her]. Now she’s known and she’s despised. She’s underwater in every single media market: New York City, Long Island, Hudson Valley, Capital District, Upstate Urban, Upstate Rural, and Western New York. They’re seeing those same numbers that we are while conducting our polling and research across the state.

Q: Are you concerned about the effect Trump’s lack of popularity in New Jersey had on its governor’s race, which Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill won handily?

A: In that case, Mikie Sherrill was not an incumbent governor the way that Kathy Hochul is, and I’ve served with Mikie Sherrill. Kathy Hochul is abysmal and the bottom of the barrel. And Mikie Sherrill is just a different type of candidate than Kathy Hochul, who is an embattled governor, who is being primaried by her own handpicked lieutenant governor, who owns the catastrophic economic and safety policies in New York State.

Q: Will you bring fracking to New York?

A: Absolutely. Day 1, I will be lifting the moratorium on fracking. We need to unleash American energy independence and New York energy independence, and that’s a major reason why we have the affordability crisis — because of the insane energy policies of Kathy Hochul. . . .  She has chosen to block fracking. She has chosen to put in the gas-stove ban. We’re going to focus on New York natural resources that are affordable and also abundant and will lead to a huge economic boost for every New Yorker, every family, to pay lower bills, but it also will provide thousands of jobs in upstate, specifically the Southern Tier.

Q: How will you solve the cost-of-living issue and is that the biggest issue for voters and the GOP?

A: So No. 1, you have to cut taxes. Here Hochul has a record of raising taxes. . . .  I’m the only candidate that will actually cut taxes, and I delivered that already, and voters will see that next year when they file their taxes. I negotiated the largest middle-class tax cut for New Yorkers in history with both the president and the Secretary of Treasury, and my colleagues in the New York Republican delegation, by the lifting of the SALT deduction. We are going to make New York the most affordable state with the most competitive tax issues by cutting taxes, rather than being taxed the most. The second piece is energy. Energy is the fuel of the economy, and New Yorkers are paying more for energy bills than anywhere else in the country. That’s why those issues you talked about are so important. Lifting the moratorium on fracking to “frack baby, frack.” That is going to lower the costs tremendously. Green lighting the pipeline [project] that Kathy Hochul blocked for so many years. Getting rid of the insane gas-stove ban. I also want to take a sledgehammer to the red tape and bureaucracy that makes it so expensive to do business.

Q: What do you bring to the table that Hochul lacks?

A: A record of results. I’ve been re-elected overwhelmingly. I’m in my sixth term in Congress. I bring energy. I am a hardworking mom, a hardworking member of Congress with the ability to win and unify Republicans, independents, and Democrats. I’m laser-focused on tackling the affordability crisis to lower the cost of groceries, to lower costs of energy bills, as well as to lower taxes. I also understand how important it is with a young family to have safe communities. . . .  I have a record of doing that. And while I’ve served in Congress — whereas Kathy Hochul has only served with Democratic majorities in the Assembly, Senate . . .  in the governor’s seat — I’ve served with Democrats, Republicans, and I’ve been able to effectively deliver for New Yorkers, no matter what that iteration is. . . . I’ve been rated as one of the topmost bipartisan members and also one of the most effective, particularly when it comes to small businesses.