logo
Rep. Mike Lawler tells The Post he won't run for NY governor

Rep. Mike Lawler tells The Post he won't run for NY governor

New York Post3 days ago
ALBANY, NY – Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) plans to forgo a run for governor and will instead seek reelection for his Hudson Valley House seat, he confirmed to The Post early Wednesday.
Despite months of teasing a potential bid to unseat unpopular Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, Lawler confirmed he'll instead focus on holding onto his battleground congressional seat.
Lawler's bowing out clears the way for Rep. Elise Stefanik, who has also been jostling for the GOP nod to run for Governor.
Rep. Mike Lawler will instead focus on reelection.
CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Stefanik said Wednesday that she'd make a formal decision after November.
'I am grateful for the outpouring of support across our great state from Republicans, Independents, and Democrats who know it is our last best chance to Save New York,' Stefanik wrote.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

NYC Board of Elections asks Brooklyn DA to launch voter fraud investigation after Post expose
NYC Board of Elections asks Brooklyn DA to launch voter fraud investigation after Post expose

New York Post

time24 minutes ago

  • New York Post

NYC Board of Elections asks Brooklyn DA to launch voter fraud investigation after Post expose

The city Board of Elections asked Brooklyn prosecutors to open an investigation into possible voter fraud Friday after The Post revealed two absentee ballots in a close primary council race were cast on behalf of deceased people. The BOE said it was asking the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office to look into two incidents surrounding the District 47 race, including the votes cast in the name of people who died over a decade ago and another 22 ballots that were deemed as 'potentially fraudulent.' The BOE didn't say what made the more than two dozen ballots suspicious, but that the votes had been invalidated following an internal investigation, which was then referred to the Brooklyn DA. Advertisement 3 After The Post revealed two absentee ballots were cast on behalf of two deceased individuals in a close primary council race, an investigation has been launched to determine possible voter fraud. Michael Nagle The razor-thin margin primary between Brooklyn Republican Party Chair Richie Barsamian and entrepreneur George Sarantopoulos could be decided by only a handful of votes. Unofficial election night tallies had a mere 32-vote difference between the two candidates. The 22 ballots were discovered during a manual recount process earlier this week a source told The Post, adding that lawyers from the BOE had been reviewing them in recent days. Advertisement Sarantopoulos was maintaining a 16-vote lead as of Friday, gaining two ballots in a manual recount that started Tuesday, sources said. He had been maintaining a 14-vote lead as of Wednesday, according to a statement from his campaign. A source who spoke to Barasamian — who as head of the Brooklyn GOP gets to appoint BOE employees — about The Post's original reporting Tuesday, said that the candidate confided he was 'very worried.' The Barasamian campaign did not respond to a request for comment Friday. Advertisement 3 The city Board of Elections (BOE) asked the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office to look into the District 47 race to look into the two ballots of those cast that were registered in the name of two individuals who died over 10 years ago. Facebook/ George Sarantopoulous Sources said multiple people from the Brooklyn BOE who were involved in the south Brooklyn GOP primary had been reassigned from their roles during the internal investigation. 'The workers from that section were reassigned pending the results of the investigation,' Brooklyn Democratic BOE Commish and retired NYPD detective Frank Seddio told The Post. Personal devices and computers were seized from BOE employees as part of the probe, sources said. Advertisement The BOE previously the election would be certified next week after the manual recount of votes is completed. 3 The BOE also wants another 22 ballots looked at that were deemed as 'potentially fraudulent.' Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post 'While any attempt to compromise the electoral process is deeply troubling, this case underscores the strength of the Board's existing safeguards,' the BOE said in a news release. 'These irregularities were identified early, investigated thoroughly, and resolved swiftly – demonstrating the Board's commitment to upholding the integrity of our elections.' A representative for the BK DA said the office doesn't comment on investigations. The Sarantopoulous campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Democrats Get Lowest Rating From Voters in 35 Years, WSJ Poll Finds
Democrats Get Lowest Rating From Voters in 35 Years, WSJ Poll Finds

Wall Street Journal

time25 minutes ago

  • Wall Street Journal

Democrats Get Lowest Rating From Voters in 35 Years, WSJ Poll Finds

The Democratic Party's image has eroded to its lowest point in more than three decades, according to a new Wall Street Journal poll, with voters seeing Republicans as better at handling most issues that decide elections. The new survey finds that 63% of voters hold an unfavorable view of the Democratic Party—the highest share in Journal polls dating to 1990 and 30 percentage points higher than the 33% who hold a favorable view.

Key decisions that will shape rural health fund
Key decisions that will shape rural health fund

Axios

timean hour ago

  • Axios

Key decisions that will shape rural health fund

States next year will begin tapping the $50 billion rural health fund in the GOP's tax and spending law, but questions have already arisen about how the funds will be allocated — and how much they will benefit rural providers. Why it matters: The fund aims at helping rural hospitals and providers adjust to sweeping changes in how Medicaid is financed, including limits on provider taxes and state-directed payments. But important details have to be fleshed out. What they're saying: Sen. Josh Hawley, who pushed for the fund, in part to get his vote for the megabill, said CMS will need to make sure the money "flows to hospitals that need it" and are not simply "going to states in general to do whatever they want with it." "So far, so good. I liked how it was written up," Hawley said. "But we'll want to monitor closely how the agency puts it into effect." Sen. Thom Tillis, who was one of the three GOP "no" votes on the reconciliation bill, told Axios that CMS needs to "make sure it's a fair formula for rural hospitals." "I think that that pot of money looks big, but it's not really when you consider some of the economic impacts, mainly from the state-directed payments," Tillis said. "We'll be interested to see how they interpret the law." How it works: The new law allocates $10 billion annually for the next five years, starting in 2026. The law says $25 billion is to be distributed equally among all states that submit a "detailed rural health transformation plan," which could include details on how they would use the funds. Between the lines: States can apply for the aid only once, by the end of this year. If they estimate wrong, or run into unforeseen problems, they don't get another shot at it. CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz must approve each state's application by Dec. 31. CMS has discretion to distribute the other $25 billion, based on factors such as how much of the state's population is rural and the number of rural health facilities. The CMS administrator can also consider other factors deemed appropriate. Friction point: Some of that flexibility raises questions about how CMS will proceed, said Zach Levinson, director of the KFF Project on Hospital Costs. "States will also have discretion on how they distribute funds among hospitals and other providers," Levinson said. "And they maybe will steer some dollars to non-rural areas, pending CMS approval." The concern is that some states could be favored over others, or that funding will not go to providers with the greatest needs. "There are risks of this becoming a slush fund if it's not carefully attended to and if it's not focused" on actual rural hospitals, said Jackson Hammond, a senior policy analyst at Paragon Health Institute. All the money has to be distributed by 2030 and spent by 2032. That also means much of the assistance will have already been spent before the provider tax and state-directed payment provisions take effect in 2028. The $50 billion sum also is about one-third of the $155 billion in estimated cuts to federal Medicaid spending in rural areas, per a KFF analysis.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store