Personality
This week's biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
The process for choosing a new pope is highly secretive – but it’s nowhere near as opaque as New York’s $250-odd billion state budget deal. We know the names of the 133 cardinals who choose the new pope, and we know how they conduct their rounds of votes. They give us a very clear “yes” or “no” update each day in the form of white or black smoke. The budget, on the other hand, is an ugly and convoluted set of bills, hashed out in secret by – who knows! Nameless central staffers? Lobbyists? The governor herself? You’d be forgiven for thinking the state budget is a spending plan. But no, it also includes a whole bevy of random policies agreed to, again, in the dark. The cardinals are also faster than whomever hashes out the state budget. They sent up white smoke within about a day of convening. The state budget – as of this writing – is 38 days late.
Yvonne Armstrong -
New York’s largest health care union voted to topple their longtime president George Gresham in a landslide vote over the weekend, crowning Yvonne Armstrong as the new leader of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. It was a big victory for Armstrong, who has led the union’s long-term care division for years – and one that will no doubt usher in a new chapter for the powerful union.
Clarisa Ayaleto -
First-time City Council candidate Clarisa Ayaleto logged a David vs. Goliath – or democracy vs. dollars – win this week, as she clung onto a spot on the Democratic primary ballot for the open 8th District seat in Upper Manhattan and the Bronx. Ayaleto’s petitions were successfully challenged by the well-funded independent expenditure committee backing rival candidate Wilfredo López. But Ayaleto appealed after getting kicked off the ballot, and the court ruled that a minor “scrivener’s error” on her cover sheet shouldn’t prevent her from running in what is sure to be a very competitive primary.
Kathy Hochul -
She just keeps getting away with it. The Legislature is finally wrapping up the most delayed budget since 2010, and Gov. Kathy Hochul is basically getting everything she wants. Several of the provisions underwent changes in the final budget, but the governor still managed to get more than ever done thanks to her strategy of holding up the budget until legislators agreed to her demands. Sure, it’s not great that the spending plan is over a month late, but Hochul is once again vindicated.
John Reilly III -
Town highway superintendents normally make news for plowing and potholes, not for the (alleged) attempted murder of a lost DoorDash driver who asked for directions. Chester Highway Superintendent John Reilly III was arrested on felony assault charges after allegedly shooting the 24-year-old driver in the back. State police said the driver, who survived, was only attempting to deliver take out. Chester officials are “deeply troubled” but remain powerless to remove Reilly, who was reelected unopposed in 2023.
Mike Lawler -
Rep. Mike Lawler has said he’s planning to make a decision on a gubernatorial run in June, but it looks like President Donald Trump made that decision for him in May. Between Trump’s pointed endorsement of Lawler’s 2026 reelection bid – rather than a potential statewide run – and Rep. Elise Stefanik’s poll numbers, it’s starting to look like Lawler’s future is being simplified. At least he can look forward to a congressional reelection fight, which is looking more difficult by the day.
Letitia James -
After a warning shot a few weeks ago, the FBI has now officially opened an investigation into state Attorney General Letitia James over alleged mortgage fraud. While some threats from the Trump administration have simply faded away into nothingness, the DOJ is now making good on the promise of going after James, who has been one of the biggest thorns in the president’s side. James insists that she has done nothing wrong and that the investigation is politically motivated. But that doesn’t make it any less of an issue for the AG.