ALBANY, N.Y. — Gov. Hochul is expected to announce Sen. Brian Benjamin as her lieutenant governor, the Daily News has learned.
Hochul, who took office Tuesday, has said repeatedly in recent days that she planned to choose a lieutenant governor from the five boroughs. Her office said only that she will join Benjamin in the city Thursday for a “special announcement.”
Benjamin is a fellow Democrat who has served two terms in the Senate and has represented a large swath of Harlem since 2017 after initially winning a special election.
The 44-year-old will replace Hochul in her previous, largely ceremonial role and serve as the president of the Senate among other vaguely defined duties.
Benjamin declined to comment, although a source said the pair have long maintained a positive relationship.
“As a native son of Harlem, this is a good pick for the people of our community, who will now have an even greater voice in the halls of state government,” said former assemblyman Keith Wright, the head of the Manhattan Democrats.
One of the first to congratulate Benjamin was fellow Sen. Jamaal Bailey (D-Bronx), who was on Hochul’s shortlist for the position.
“All about the Benjamins about to be played on a statewide level! As we reimagine New York, we continue to move forward with the best. Huge congrats to my brother... and his wonderful family on this well-deserved appointment as our new Lieutenant Governor!” Bailey tweeted.
Two sources said Bailey, the chairman of the Bronx Democratic Party, as well as Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. were top choices for the position before Benjamin accepted.
Hochul, a Buffalo native, made history this week as she became the first woman to serve as New York governor after now-former Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigned amid sexual harassment allegations.
She is intimately familiar with Benjamin’s new role after serving as lieutenant governor under Cuomo for six and a half years, crisscrossing the state to promote economic development and policy items.
Hochul has vowed a “fresh, collaborative approach” to state government, meaning Benjamin may play a more significant role in her administration.
Cuomo and Hochul were not known to have a close relationship and the newly appointed governor hammered that fact home earlier Wednesday, telling MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that her former boss attempted to have her removed from the ticket, but she “didn’t back down.”
Unlike presidents and vice presidents at the federal level, lieutenant governors in New York are elected separately but often run alongside a gubernatorial candidate.
The choice of Benjamin for her second-in-command is very much a calculated move on Hochul’s part meant to shore up downstate support ahead of a run for a full term next year.
Democratic mayoral nominee and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams praised the pick.
“I like Brian, and she was looking for someone that can balance her. And I think Brian brings a high level of expertise into government, and I like him,” Adams said following an event Wednesday at City College of Technology in downtown Brooklyn. “She’s showing the diversity of her ticket ... and he has an impressive record, educational credentials. He understands government.”
Benjamin, a former Morgan Stanley investment adviser, currently serves as the chairman of the state Senate’s Revenue and Budget Committee.
He mounted a failed bid for city comptroller earlier this year, placing fourth in the Democratic primary.
The son of Caribbean immigrants, Benjamin has been the lead sponsor or advocate for a host of police and criminal justice reform measures in recent years including the Eric Garner Anti-Chokehold Act, which makes it a felony for police officers to use chokeholds, and the repeal of 50-a, which makes police disciplinary records public.
He was also the lead sponsor of the Less is More Act, which restricts the use of incarceration for non-criminal technical parole violations, such as breaking a curfew or travel restrictions or failing a drug testing.
Supporters say the measure incentivizes good behavior through earned time credits, reduces the types of rules violations that could send people back to prison and reduces parole officer caseloads.
Both the Senate and Assembly approved the bill in June and it awaits the signature of the governor to become law.
Benjamin also penned a bill that would bar cops who are fired or forced to resign because of misconduct from working in law enforcement in New York.
With Tim Balk
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