Gov. Kathy Hochul confirmed Wednesday that her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, had plotted to oust her from the statewide Democratic ticket in 2022 before a slew of scandals forced him from office.
Hochul made the remarks just hours after The Post revealed that in late January, top Cuomo aides were dispatched to tell the Buffalo-area politician the longtime executive wanted her gone.
“It’s an open secret that we are not close,” said Hochul, during a press conference in Manhattan. “This was attempted at the end of 2014, primary. This was attempted in 2018. And I’m still standing.”
She also told reporters that she demurred from joining the chorus of politicians demanding Cuomo’s resignation this spring because they would have looked “somewhat self-serving.”
“But, I said I want a full investigation,” she added. “I will stand with the results of that investigation. That’s exactly what I did.”
Sources told The Post that Cuomo sought to replace Hochul with a minority politician to better insulate the governor from potential primary challenges from the Democratic Party’s ascendant left wing as he prepared to run for a fourth term.
A source familiar with Cuomo’s thinking said that “there was a concern about diversity on the ticket.”
“We wanted to ensure, going forward, the ticket more accurately reflected the diversity of the state,” the person added.
Hochul and Cuomo were never close and sources confirmed to The Post that the governor’s staff went to great lengths to minimize his running mate’s public profile.
“There was a concerted effort to sideline her as much as possible,” said a former Cuomo insider.
