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Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul says she and Cuomo 'have not been close'

New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul is poised to become the state's first female governor after Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigned amid sexual harassment claims.

Associated Press, USA TODAY

During her time aslieutenant governor, Kathy Hochul has said its time to rethink our criminal justice system, and reiterated that shehas "evolved" from her previous push against drivers licenses for undocumented immigrants.

Now shes days away from being governor after a sexual harassment scandal resulted inthe pending resignation of her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo. Her governorship, which begins Aug. 24, will come amid a surging coronavirus delta variant, as well as its ensuing social and economic upheaval all of which have disproportionately impacted communities of color.

Despite her prior stance on driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants, many advocates hope Hochul will pursue a robust agenda, including racial justice and parole and immigration reform.

And many of those same voices view Hochul with much more optimism than Cuomo, who signed bail reform and whose administration oversaw several prison closuresbut who has been criticized for being unrelenting toward his opponents.

New York is at a crossroads, said Gabriel Sayegh, co-executive director of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice. We have an opportunity in New York to pursue an agenda on equity, an agenda on healthcare reform and justice reform.

In the past, Hochul has supported many measures put forth by the Cuomo administration as his lieutenant.

In a July interview with WBFO-FM, she said bail reform enacted under the Cuomo administration created a fairer criminal-justice system but said there may need to be adjustments to the law, which eliminated cash bail for many misdemeanors and non-violent felonies.

Think about the system that existed in this state prior to our reforms, where two individuals are accused of the exact same offense. One ends up going free walking the streets, the other incarcerated. The only difference: whether one was rich or poor, whether they had the money to make bail, she told the news outlet. So that is no longer the system in the state of New York. I think most people agree that that is a fairer system.

Hochuls support forrepealing thewalking while trans ban was key to getting it taken off the books, said New York Civil Liberties Union Policy Counsel Jared Trujillo.

Passed in 1976, the prior law allowed authorities to halt people loitering for prostitution. But it was frequently usedto discriminate against transgender people, repeal advocates said.

Trujillo hopes Hochul'sadvocacy on the repealis indicative of her desire to weigh in on the criminal legal system with an understanding of intersectionality.

Im hopeful based upon the work that she did on walking while trans and really her ability to see that criminal legal system issues arent just criminal legal system issues, he said. Theyre also immigration issues, and economic issues, and family issues, and just a number of other things that really support the entire human.

More: Kathy Hochul: Five challenges facing the incoming NY governor

On the anniversary of George Floyd's death, Hochultweeted, It's on all of us to recognize, step up and confront the systemic racism, inequalities and injustices in our society.

And when police shoved protestor Martin Gugino in her native Buffalo, leaving him injured, Hochul told WAMC the incident was a difficult sight.

During the interview, she added, this is the time to think about reform and the role of policing in communities.

Reform is always tough, she told WAMC. Its always resisted, but it has to happen.

Hochul could not be reached for comment for this article.

Hochul will nowdefine her path, though there could be some approved reform bills from Cuomo's time in office that will be waiting for her when she becomes governor.

One such bill may bethe Less IsMore Act, which would allowthose on parole who are accused of non-criminal technical violations to be issued a violation and a date to appear instead of being taken into custody. The bill has gotten support from a wide coalition, including several faith leaders and district attorneys from across the state.

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But Cuomo has not signed the measure into law, said Sayegh of the Katal Center, a leading organization behind the proposal.Sayeghhopes Hochul will sign it if Cuomo doesnt,and that shell gofurther.

Other legislation that could be waiting for Hochuls approval includes the Start Act. The measure would allow sex trafficking survivors to ask the court to clear convictions for offenses resulting from being trafficked and ensure their information is kept private, advocates say.

We would hope that Governor Hochul would step in and tacklethose problems with real energy and to work with New Yorkers who are impacted by these issues, he said. And, really try to advance policies that are focused on equity and trying to unravel the injustice that becomes too familiar."

"We'll celebrate her when we think she is doing right," he said. "We'll challenge her where we think she's not."

"We're not taking anything for granted," he added.

Jose Saldana, of theRelease Aging People in Prison campaign, orRAPP, hasbeen trying to get parole reform passed; last year, his organizationthrew its support behind several measures, including two parole reform bills.

More: Kathy Hochul says she's ready to become NY governor: 'I will fight like hell for you'

Neither of the two passed.Saldana said that thousands of families with incarcerated loved ones are "counting" on Hochul to take a standon mass incarceration by granting more clemencies and supporting parole reforms.

Saldanais hopeful that his mission to stop people from languishing in prisons will have better chances under a Hochul administration.

"Tens of thousands of families with incarcerated loved ones across the state are counting on incoming Gov. Hochul to turn the page on this ugly chapter in our history that we call mass incarceration by expanding the use of clemencies and promoting fair and common-sense parole reforms," he said.

Hochul said in a press conferencethat she's still building her senior staff and said that she'll lay out her vision for the state shortly after becoming governor.

Eddie Taveras, state immigration director of pro-immigration group FWD.us, said having diversity among Hochulsstaff is an early indicator of where she stands.

More: David Paterson's advice for Gov. Kathy Hochul. What she should do first

Another will be how her administration handles the distributionof money for the Excluded WorkerFund, a $2.1 billion fund meant toassistmany joblessimmigrant workers who were excluded from unemployment benefits during the pandemic.

"I go into this moment with more of an open mind and hoping that she takes this opportunityto redefine what she stands for and how inclusive immigrant and immigrant communities will be a part of that," Taverassaid.

But Hochuls past stance against giving driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants as Erie County clerk still resonates with some. She was against former Gov. Eliot Spitzer's proposal in 2007 to grant licenses to undocumented immigrants and said she would have them arrested if they applied for one in Erie County.

Later, in 2019, she penned an opinion piece in support of the Green Light Law. The law, signed by Cuomo, ultimately allowedundocumented immigrants to apply for New York driver's licenses, 12 years after Spitzer's initial push.

I had taken a position that has now evolved, Hochul said at an Aug. 11 news conference.And that evolution coincides with the evolution of many people."

More: How do you pronounce Hochul? Here's the trick NY's incoming governor uses

Taveras said he would also like her administration toshepherd legislation that would help immigrants economically, such as allowing them to get occupational licenses and addressing language barriers.

Still, Taveras said, "We'llproceed with caution." Hochul's actions in the next few months, he said, "will really determine her incoming legacy."

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith covers race and justice for the USA TODAY Network of New York. Click here for her latest stories. Follow her on Twitter @T_Cusaac.

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Kathy Hochul's stance on criminal justice, immigration reform - The Journal News