Rep. Tom Suozzi, a moderate Democrat, announced Monday he is running for governor.
“I’m running for governor of New York State,” he said during a virtual press conference, making his expected bid against Gov. Kathy Hochul official.”I’ve got the background and proven ability to do this job. Everything I’ve done in my life has prepared me for this particular job at this particular time.”
Touting his experience as mayor of Glen Cove and Nassau County Executive, Suozzi labeled himself a “common-sense Democrat,” vowing to partner with people from across the ideological spectrum to lower property taxes and reduce crime as well as homelessness.
“I’m a common-sense Democrat. I don’t believe it’s about going to the far left or to the far right; it’s about trying to find the answers to the problems that we face,” he told reporters Monday morning. “I’ll work with anybody. I’ll work with Democrats over the Republicans, I’ll work with progressives, I work with moderates, I’ll work with anybody to actually solve problems and get things done.”
“It’s not it’s not about being politically correct; It’s about doing the correct thing to actually help people.”
During the one-hour news conference, repeatedly Suozzi stressed the importance of enacting tough-on-crime measures, including giving judges the ability to “pull violent offenders off the streets,” in a likely nod to allowing judges to use the “dangerousness” standard to remand certain New Yorkers accused of criminal wrongdoing.
“We have to make sure that we fight crime. We have to get cops on the street,” he said. “We have to give judges the power, the discretion, to pull violent offenders off the streets.”
“They could look at the person’s record and history, give them the discretion to stop violent offenders from being back out on the streets, because sometimes someone will get arrested for a low level offense, but they’ve got a history of violent crime. And the judge has to look at the totality of circumstances to determine what’s the right way forward, as a way to keep violent offenders off the streets,” he explained later. “So I think — they have that in other states, when you give judges that power to remand people, and I think that’s the answer here.”
Asked by The Post about his strategy for approaching the politically fraught issue with legislative leaders who have held their positions on bail reform, Suozzi said he would have more to say on the topic “as the campaign goes on,” before repeating, “I think that we have to give judges the authority to remove violent offenders off the street.”
In recent months, Suozzi has signaled he wants to lead the Democratic Party’s moderate faction as sources told The Post he was mulling a gubernatorial bid.
In an apparent attempt to boost his moderate bona fides, the vocal advocate for removing the cap on SALT deductions backed Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown’s successful write-in campaign against socialist Democratic Party nominee India Walton while Hochul sat the race out.
Despite recent battles against his party’s left flank, Suozzi brushed aside the notion his political views are similar to those of disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who resigned in August amid a myriad of scandals.
“There’s a lot of differences between Andrew Cuomo, and so I don’t want to say that I’m running in the Cuomo lane,” he said.
Asked if he was “entirely ruling out” running for re-election next in his current Congressional seat, Suozzi answered, “I’m running for governor.”
“I’m not doing an exploratory committee; I’m running for governor,” he declared, without explicitly stating he would not seek a return to Congress.
The reporter pressed, “So you will not be a candidate for Congress under any circumstances?”
“I’m running for governor of New York State,” responded Suozzi, who noted he has “about $3 million” in his congressional campaign account at his disposal.
At least one Empire State political honcho hopes he’ll reconsider.
Jay Jacobs — the Hochul campaign-supporting chair of the New York State Democratic Party — told The Post he urged Suozzi shortly before the press conference not to throw his hat in the ring.
“I’ve advised him not to make a run, I don’t see a path for him to win a primary,” said Jacobs, who also serves as the head of Nassau County Democratic Party.
Jacobs expressed concern about Democrats chances in the 2022 midterms, lamenting that the locally “popular” Suozzi’s entry into the gubernatorial race leaves New York’s 3rd Congressional District — which could see its boundaries significantly shift next year following the ongoing redistricting process — vulnerable to be taken by a Republican.
“I think people have short memories. The Democrats just had a tough 2021 election which should indicate to everyone that 2022 will not be a walk in the park and we need to be united now, not divided, and people should be thinking about the good of the party and the good of the state,” he said. “I don’t think Tom was concerned about winning reelection. I think if he runs for Congress, he will win. He’s popular in his district.”
He added, “What happens now is we take a safe seat and make it a seat that’s up for grabs … by it being an open seat.”
George Santos — a Republican contender for Suozzi’s congressional seat who was defeated by the Democrat in 2020 by a slim margin — predicted the race would now be a coin flip with the incumbent running for the statewide post.
“I think an open seat, especially when you’re removing an incumbent like Tom Suozzi with a known presence, it becomes a toss up,” he told The Post.
State Attorney General Letitia James, who last month announced her gubernatorial campaign, said, “We welcome Representative Tom Suozzi to the campaign.”
“In a short time, there has been a groundswell of excitement and enthusiasm around Attorney General Letitia James’ historic candidacy because New Yorkers know we need a change maker who can break the status quo as our next governor, and the only person who can deliver that transformational change is Letitia James,” she added in a prepared statement.
The announcement comes after Suozzi — who has represented parts of Long Island’s North Shore and a sliver of New York City in Congress since 2017 — revealed over the weekend he was declining Adams’ offer to serve as deputy mayor.
That came after during an unrelated press conference on Nov. 20, Adams mentioned that he was “somehow trying to convince [Suozzi] to be a deputy mayor in my administration.”
Suozzi in turn told The Post he was “flattered” by the proposal and would consider it over Thanksgiving.
On Saturday, Suozzi declared that he would not accept Adams’ offer and had chosen instead to seek an elected office — without specifying which one.
“After discussing it with my family, I believe the best way for me to help him and NYC is in elected office,” he tweeted. “I will announce my plans for the future in the coming days. [Thank you] Eric!”
Suozzi will face a crowded field that includes Gov. Kathy Hochul, state AG James and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose second and final term concludes at the end of the year, has slowly taken steps toward launching a campaign as well.
The national lawmaker would face an uphill battle to oust the incumbent chief executive, according to recent polls. Hochul holds a commanding lead in the Democratic gubernatorial primary with support from 36 percent of likely voters in the contest, as Suozzi ranked fifth with 6 percent, a survey released last week showed.
Suozzi, 59, formerly served as mayor of Glen Cove and Nassau County Executive and unsuccessfully challenged Eliot Spitzer in the 2006 Democratic gubernatorial primary. He was first elected to Congress in 2016 following the retirement of ex-Rep. Steve Israel.
