ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul used her annual State of the State address Tuesday to unveil a reelection year agenda aimed at bridging divides in the Democratic Party — moving to harness liberal anger at President Donald Trump and excitement over Mayor Zohran Mamdani, while also tending to moderates anxious about public safety and antisemitism.
Speaking to a packed crowd at The Egg, a striking domed theater near the state’s ornate Capitol building, Hochul announced a slate of affordability proposals, including a plan to expand pre-kindergarten programs statewide.
She also castigated the president’s immigration crackdown, saying protecting New Yorkers “also means standing up to ICE agents who abuse their power.”
Hochul, a Democrat, proposed one legal change intended to allow people to sue federal officers “when they act outside the scope of their duties,” and another intended to keep immigration agents out of schools, hospitals and houses of worship unless they have a warrant from a judge.
“Public safety will always come first, but it must be pursued lawfully and with humanity,” Hochul said. “When boundaries are crossed, accountability matters.”
Hochul, a centrist from Buffalo, faces challenges from both her political left and right in this year's election
Republican Bruce Blakeman, a Trump-aligned county official in New York’s City’s suburbs, has announced a run for governor, bashing Hochul over the state’s high taxes and cost of living.
After Hochul’s address, Blakeman fired off his own criticism, saying: “If speeches fixed problems, New York would be thriving. Instead, families are struggling and businesses are leaving.”
At the same time, Hochul is courting support from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, in part to beat back a primary challenge from her own lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado.
Delgado has assailed Hochul for months, casting her as a reactive executive unable to meet the political moment during Trump's second term.
Yet, Hochul has emerged as a potential steward of Mamdani's ambitious affordability agenda at the state Capitol.
Child care — a signature priority for Mamdani — was also at the top of Hochul's list, with the governor reiterating plans to set up a child care program for 2-year-olds in New York City, along with a wider plan to establish a universal pre-K program throughout the state by 2028.
Mamdani, who was seated near the stage, rose to applaud Hochul’s child care plan. The rest of the room followed, delivering her a standing ovation. Amid the clapping, the governor added: “Republicans have kids, too, you can stand.”
Hochul then turned to crime, promising to continue enhanced police patrols on the city's subways and expand the use of mental health teams throughout the transit system.
She also proposed a ban on protests within 25 feet (7 meters) of a house of worship, referencing a recent incident outside a synagogue in Queens where people chanted pro-Hamas remarks.
“That’s not free expression. That’s harassment. And targeting a Jewish community in this way is antisemitism," Hochul said.
Hochul also vowed to protect New Yorkers from the Trump administration's changes on public health policy, saying she would ensure the state's immunization standards “are set by trusted medical experts, not conspiracy theorists."
Hochul's plans will be subject to negotiations with the state Legislature, which is controlled by Democrats, over the coming months. She has resisted Mamdani’s proposals to support some social programs by raising taxes on the state’s richest residents.
While Hochul was in Albany, Delgado, who the governor picked for the position in 2022, was running counter programming, making stops along what he has called the “State of the People Tour.”
"This moment demands urgency, honesty, and the courage to act. New Yorkers can’t afford Governor Hochul’s half-measures,” he said in a statement.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul delivers the 2026 State of the State address, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Albany, N.Y. (Mike Groll/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul via AP)
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul delivers the 2026 State of the State address, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Albany, N.Y. (Darren McGee/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul via AP)
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul delivers the 2026 State of the State address, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Albany, N.Y. (Darren McGee/ Office of Governor Kathy Hochul via AP)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom won final approval from a key agency on Thursday, despite a federal judge recently ordering a halt to construction unless Congress allows what would be the biggest structural change to the American landmark in more than 70 years.
The 12-member National Capital Planning Commission, the agency tasked with approving construction on federal property in the Washington region, took the vote because U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s ruling — which came two days earlier — affects construction activities but not the planning process, said the commission's Trump-appointed chair, Will Scharf.
A vote of 8-1, with two commissioners voting present and one absent, allowed the plan to move forward.
Despite the agency’s approval, the judge’s ruling and a legal fight over the ballroom could stall progress on a legacy project that Trump is racing to see completed before the end of his term in early 2029. It’s among a series of changes the Republican president is planning for the nation’s capital to leave his lasting imprint while he’s still in office.
Before the vote, Scharf, a top White House aide, noted that Leon's order has been stayed for two weeks as the administration seeks an appeal. He said, as he understood the decision, it “really does not impact our action here today.”
Reading from notes, Scharf also delivered an impassioned defense of the project that reviewed the full history of changes and additions to the White House that were criticized when they were made but have become beloved with the passage of time. He spoke about the addition of the north and south porticos and the balcony added by President Harry Truman.
Scharf suggested that Trump’s proposed ballroom will similarly come to be viewed as a wise addition — despite drawing contemporary opposition from some members of the public and government officials.
“I believe that in time this ballroom will be considered every bit as much of a national treasure as the other key components of the White House,” Scharf said.
Scharf also said the project has been viewed negatively because of opposition to Trump, instead of the merits, saying, “I feel that we’ve been unfairly slighted in the press and otherwise for the way we’ve gone about reviewing this particular project.”
The vote by the commission, which includes three members Trump gets to appoint, had initially been scheduled for March but was postponed to Thursday because so many people signed up to comment at the commission’s meeting last month. The comments were overwhelmingly in opposition to the ballroom.
The lone “no” vote was cast by Phil Mendelson, a Democrat who chairs the Council of the District of Columbia. Linda Argo and Arrington Dixon, the two commissioners appointed by Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, voted present.
Mendelson criticized the design of the ballroom addition and how fast it was approved.
“It’s just too large,” he said.
Criticism also came from Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization. One of its attorneys, Jon Golinger, said the commission had discounted opposition from city officials and thousands of people who commented against the project, and ignored the judge's ruling. Several commissioners, including Scharf, had said they took the public feedback seriously.
“This approval is illegitimate and this vote is a joke," Golinger said.
Trump, in a statement after the vote, thanked the commissioners and said he was honored.
“When completed, it will be the Greatest and Most Beautiful Ballroom of its kind anywhere in the World, and a fabulous complement to our Beautiful and Storied White House!” the president said on social media.
Before voting, the commission considered design changes to the 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom addition that the president announced aboard Air Force One on Sunday, as he flew back to Washington from a weekend at his Florida home.
He removed a large staircase on the south side of the building and added an uncovered porch to the southwest side. Architects and other critics of the project had panned the staircase as too large and basically useless since there was no way to enter the ballroom at the top.
A White House official said the president had considered comments from the National Capital Planning Commission and another oversight entity, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, which approved the project earlier this year, as well as members of the public.
The official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss the ballroom design and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said additional “refinements” had been made to the exterior.
The ballroom, now estimated to cost $400 million, has expanded in scope and price tag since Trump first announced the project last summer, citing a need for space other than a tent on the lawn to host important guests. Trump demolished the East Wing in October with little warning, and site preparation and underground work have been underway since then.
Two other Trump-appointed commissioners, Stuart Levenbach and James Blair, voted for the project.
Levenbach, who serves as vice chairman and is the federal government’s chief statistician, said the White House is currently “not suited” to accommodate large numbers of guests and the addition will improve the “utility” of the compound.
He said tunnels and other structures underground at the White House made it impossible to place many features of the ballroom there, too, as some have suggested might be possible. Levenbach said the addition is a “multipurpose facility,” noting that, in addition to a ballroom, it will also have offices for the first lady, kitchen space and a theater.
“This is not an expansion for its own sake,” Levenbach said.
Blair, a deputy to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, said visitors and guests of the president deserve a “better experience."
Scharf and Blair also said Trump will get “very limited use” of the ballroom before his term ends.
Trump went ahead with the project before seeking input from the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts, which he reconstituted with allies and supporters.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a private nonprofit organization, sued after Trump demolished the East Wing last fall to build the ballroom addition — a space nearly twice as big as the mansion itself.
Trump says it will be paid for with donations from wealthy people and corporations, including him, though public dollars are paying for underground bunkers and security upgrades.
The trust sought a temporary halt to construction until Trump presented the project to both commissions and Congress for approval. Leon agreed but said that his order would take effect in two weeks and that construction related to security would be allowed.
President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Work continues on the construction of the ballroom at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
President Donald Trump holds a rendering of the proposed new East Wing of the White House as he speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from West Palm Beach, Fla., to Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Work continues on the construction of the ballroom at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
President Donald Trump holds a rendering of the proposed new East Wing of the White House as he speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from West Palm Beach, Fla., to Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
