Hochul primary challenger Antonio Delgado ends campaign for New York governor

New York Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado announced Tuesday he is ending his campaign for governor of New York, saying he "concluded that there simply is no viable path forward." 

The withdrawal comes just days after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani endorsed Delgado’s boss, Gov. Kathy Hochul, as she runs for re-election. Delgado would have challenged Hochul in the Democratic primary this year. 

"I’ve decided to end my campaign for Governor of New York. After much consideration, I’ve concluded that there simply is no viable path forward," Delgado said in a statement on Tuesday. 

"And though my campaign has come to an end, I fully intend to do all I can in our effort to build a more humane, affordable, and equitable state that serves all New Yorkers. I will also support Democrats in our effort to hold the line against Trump and take back our democracy," he added. 

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"I do not make this decision lightly, particularly given that so many have poured their belief into our campaign and are desperate to be given a voice," Delgado also said, adding, "Ultimately, this decision for me comes down to my belief that to walk with purpose, is to walk with love." 

Following Delgado's announcement, Hochul campaign communications director Sarafina Chitika told Fox News Digital, "Governor Hochul has spent all year uniting her big-tent party around a vision for affordability and safety for every New York family."

"Thanks to her leadership, our campaign and our party are strong and ready to defeat Donald Trump and his enablers up and down the ballot, take back the House, and hand Bruce Blakeman yet another loss this November," Chitika added. "Donald Trump and Bruce Blakeman are united in their efforts to raise costs on working families, send masked ICE agents into our streets to terrorize innocent communities, and wage war on New York kids. Our party is now just as united to stop them."

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Last week, Delgado named former Buffalo mayoral candidate India Walton, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, as his running mate in an effort to beef up his support among progressives in his challenge against Hochul, a centrist Democrat.

But any bounce Delgado might have enjoyed with the Democratic Party's progressive base was quickly superseded by Mamdani's endorsement of Hochul.

Hochul had backed Mamdani, a democratic socialist, last September as the Democratic Party's mayoral nominee battled former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa in the general election mayoral showdown. 

Delgado, a former two-term member of Congress, launched his bid for governor last June, a rare instance of a lieutenant governor taking on a sitting governor.

But the most recent public opinion polls in the Democratic primary race indicated Hochul with a massive lead over Delgado.

And at the New York State Democratic convention last week, Delgado failed to meet the mandatory threshold to earn an automatic spot on the primary ballot. The lieutenant governor was also unsuccessful in winning the backing of the progressive Working Families Party, which decided against making an endorsement.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is the all-but-certain GOP gubernatorial nominee.

President Donald Trump endorsed Blakeman in December after Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik dropped her bid for governor.