Kathy Hochul chooses Rep. Antonio Delgado for Lt. Governor

ALBANY — Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday announced that Oxford and Harvard scholar Rep. Antonio Delgado of the Hudson Valley will be her new lieutenant governor and campaign running mate.

"We share a belief in working together to get things done for New Yorkers, and Rep. Delgado has an incredible record of doing just that in Congress,” Hochul said. “With Antonio Delgado by my side serving as lieutenant governor, we will both make history — and make a difference."

Hochul called Delgado, "an outstanding leader and public servant. "I look forward to working with him to usher in a new era of fairness, equity, and prosperity for communities across the state."

Hochul chose Delgado to fill the vacancy left by former state Sen. Brian Benjamin, who resigned as lieutenant governor in April after federal authorities arrested him on charges of bribery and corruption.

Delgado, 45, is from Rhineback and was born in the lower income neighborhood of Hamilton Hill in Schenectady. He is a graduate of Colgate University, Oxford University on a Rhodes scholarship and Harvard Law School.

Addressing the fact that he and Hochul both have upstate roots, Delgado said in a statement:

“New Yorkers deserve a lieutenant governor who's working day and night to make lives better for working people and their families," Delgado said in a statement. "Upstate, downstate, doesn't matter. We all want the same things, security, family, and opportunity. The key is to listen to New Yorkers from all walks of life and then be their voice to get the job done."

Hochul's announcement came after she had signed legislation passed Monday by the Democratic majorities of the Senate and Assembly to take Benjamin off the ballot in the June 28 primary.

Previously, state election law didn’t allow a candidate's name to be taken off the ballot after a February deadline unless the candidate had died, moved out of state or was nominated to another post.

Benjamin said Monday he would sign the necessary papers to be removed from the ballot in the primary and in November’s general election. He has denied the charges against him.

For Hochul’s ticket, the choice of Delgado brings advantages and disadvantages, said Doug Muzzio, a political-science professor at Baruch College in Manhattan.

Muzzio noted that both Hochul, who is from Buffalo, and Delgado both are from upstate, and both come from Roman Catholic backgrounds.

No upstate candidate has won the governor’s office since Republican George Pataki in 1995.

But Delgado, born of Black and Latino parents, does bring ethnic and racial balance to the ticket.
Muzzio, who has lived for decades part-time in the congressional district represented by Delgado said: “I think that’s a tough act . but I would be comfortable with him next in line for governor. He is outstanding, he is smart, he’s different."

Delgado was a standout basketball player for a Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School. In Congress, he has a reputation as a bipartisan colleague. He was elected to Congress in 2018, beating then Rep. John Faso, a Republican.

Republicans criticized Delgado during the campaign for his former career as a hip-hop artist. Delgado was reelected in 2020 and has been long been considered a rising star in New York Democratic politics.
In Congress, the Schenectady native is chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee on commodity exchanges, energy and credit. He is married with twin sons.

In 2018, The Daily Gazette of Schenectady quoted one of Delgado’s former high school teachers who recalls the student had an “intellectual thirst.”

“So I remember one time we were reaching the end of ‘To Kill A Mockingbird,’ and (Delgado) was engaged with the discussion about Atticus’ role in the text, and the bell rang, and I said, ‘Antonio, you’re gonna be late — I know you’re going to win a Rhodes scholarship one day, but you’ve gotta get going!” remembered 10th grade English teacher Paul O’Brien.

On Monday Hochul was criticized by Republicans and some Democrats who said she showed bad judgment in choosing Benjamin in September. At the time, there had been press reports that questioned his campaign fundraising, which was at the heart of the federal accusations against him in April

Hochul said she was presented with incomplete information on Benjamin's state police background check during the vetting process she said needed to be improved.

By Michael Gormley

michael.gormley@newsday.com@GormleyAlbany

Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.