$\"A$ <\/p>\n

Q THE LANDSLIDE:<\/b> Quinnipiac University released a poll<\/a> today that found Gov. Kathy Hochul leading Republican Bruce Blakeman 58-39 \u2014 putting her on track for the fourth-largest landslide by a New York gubernatorial candidate in the past 200 years.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s by far the best poll for Hochul this year and certainly better than a Siena University survey out this morning<\/a> that found her with a modest 9 point lead over the Nassau County executive.<\/p>\n

So which one\u2019s closer to reality?<\/p>\n

The last time both pollsters released New York numbers on the same day was a few weeks before<\/a> Hochul\u2019s last election in 2022. Siena found at the time that her lead over then-Rep. Lee Zeldin was quickly shrinking, having dropped from 17 to 11 points.<\/p>\n

The Q Poll painted a more dire picture for the governor.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe released a poll in mid-October showing that Hochul had a 4 point lead over Lee Zeldin,\u201d Quinnipiac spokesperson Mary Snow said. \u201cAnd it went against the grain of other polls out there at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hochul wound up winning that race by about 6 points.<\/p>\n

Pollster vs. pollster results in prior elections have been mixed. Both Q and Siena nailed Andrew Cuomo\u2019s eventual 23 point margin of victory in October 2018 polls, though Siena\u2019s early November numbers that year found Cuomo\u2019s lead had shrunk to 13. An infamous Q Poll<\/a> from September 2010 found Cuomo with a stunningly small 6 point lead over Buffalo firebrand Carl Paladino, while a Siena poll the next day found a much more predictive 57-24 Cuomo advantage.<\/p>\n

The biggest difference this time around is that Quinnipiac assumed a higher share of November\u2019s turnout will be in deep blue New York City.<\/p>\n

The five boroughs accounted for 31 percent of the statewide turnout in 2022 and 34 percent in 2018. Siena\u2019s sample assumed 30 percent of this year\u2019s voters will come from there, while 38 percent of Quinnipiac\u2019s sample was from the city.<\/p>\n

Quinnipiac also does more to avoid undecided voters. \u201cOne tweak that we made after 2020 was an adjustment to the questions that we ask, so that we try to cut down on the number of people who say they don\u2019t know,\u201d Snow said.<\/p>\n

Only 3 percent of the Q Poll\u2019s sample declined to weigh in on the Hochul-Blakeman race, while the comparable number was 9 percent in Siena\u2019s poll. And it appears as if a lot of the Quinnipiac respondents who might not have answered Siena\u2019s questions broke toward the incumbent: Siena has Hochul winning New York City 61-27 while Quinnipiac has her up 70-27; Siena had her up 57-34 among women while Quinnipiac found her lead at 63-34.<\/p>\n

Another notable difference between the methodologies that may account for the divergent results is that Quinnipiac\u2019s sample was based on asking respondents what party they affiliate with. Siena uses voter registration files.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor a couple of years running, the New York Times\/Siena Poll was ranked as the most accurate poll in America,\u201d Siena spokesperson Steve Greenberg said. \u201cSiena has been polling New York state for nearly a quarter of a century, and we have shown that we get it right almost all of the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Republicans, for their part, believe both sets of numbers are far overstating Hochul\u2019s advantage.<\/p>\n

\u201cBlakeman is closer in the polls I\u2019ve seen than Lee Zeldin was at this moment in time four years ago,\u201d state Senate Republican Campaign Committee Chair George Borrello said. \u201cAs I travel around New York state, I have seen literally thousands of Bruce Blakeman signs. Yet I can count on one hand the number of Kathy Hochul signs I\u2019ve seen, unless you count the ones that say \u2018Fire Hochul.\u2019\u201d \u2014 Bill Mahoney<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

From the Capitol<\/h3>\n
$\"A$ <\/p>\n
MEGAWATT DEAL: <\/b>New York has made its first awards for large-scale batteries under a new program and secured contracts for new renewables that are close to getting built.<\/p>\n
The state\u2019s energy authority contracted for 719 megawatts from 13 solar, wind and hydroelectric projects and 950 megawatts of battery storage from eight projects.<\/p>\n
NYSERDA President and CEO Doreen Harris announced the awards Wednesday during a Climate Week event hosted by the state\u2019s renewable developers association.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything that we do with respect to our energy system costs money,\u201d Harris said. \u201cWhen we invest in clean energy, not only are we talking about low single-digit percentage increases in cost, we are talking about benefits that far exceed those costs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hochul warned that federal headwinds and rising expenses<\/a> made a more ambitious pace of transitioning to clean energy too costly as she successfully fought to weaken<\/a> New York\u2019s ambitious climate law earlier this year. But she has highlighted her continued support for progress on offshore wind, renewables, storage and nuclear this week.<\/p>\n
New York and developers are racing the expiration of federal tax credits. Renewables that didn\u2019t start construction by July 4 \u2014 or don\u2019t finish work by the end of the year if they start after that deadline \u2014 won\u2019t be eligible for those key incentives that lower the cost of contracts for the state.<\/p>\n
Read more from Blue Light News Pro\u2019s Marie J. French here.<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n
FROM CITY HALL<\/h3>\n
$\"Bellevue$ <\/p>\n
MAKING ROOM: <\/b>Bellevue Hospital announced a major renovation and expansion of its inpatient psychiatric wing, fueled by an infusion of $26.5 million from the City Council.<\/p>\n
Bellevue, which is part of the NYC Health + Hospitals system, will use the new capital funding to add 40 beds for adult psychiatric patients over the next few years \u2014 bringing the division\u2019s total capacity to 204 beds.<\/p>\n
Hospital officials said the expansion will ease the bottleneck of patients with severe mental illnesses who need to be admitted for continued observation and treatment; those inpatient psychiatric units have been operating consistently at 98% capacity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe need here demanded an investment of this scale,\u201d Council member Virginia Maloney, who spearheaded the funding, said during a news conference in the hospital\u2019s atrium.<\/p>\n
Bellevue Hospital CEO Eric Wei said the facility has seen a bump in psychiatric patients since the April 2025 closure of Mount Sinai Beth Israel several blocks away. Bellevue\u2019s dedicated ER for psychiatric patients, which Wei said sees about 30 patients daily, is undergoing its own $40 million expansion.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are unfortunately needing to transfer out about 90 patients a month to other inpatient units because there\u2019s no room in our inpatient psychiatric units,\u201d Wei said in an interview. \u201cWe\u2019re always feeling like I\u2019m toeing the line. We\u2019re very busy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bellevue was so overwhelmed as of late that hospital officials asked FDNY<\/a> to stop bringing them patients with psychiatric emergencies, according to EMS union Local 2507. Those diversion requests continued for at least a couple weeks in late August and early September, a union spokesperson said. \u2014 Maya Kaufman<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
IN OTHER NEWS<\/h3>\n\u2014 INSTITUTIONAL FAILURE: <\/b>A NYC high school which once enrolled 3,000 students now has only 90. (The City Reporter<\/a>)\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
\u2014 FIRST IN THE NATION:<\/b> In a new TV ad, Hochul is touting her first-in-the-nation data center moratorium. (City & State<\/a>)\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
\u2014 HITTING THE BRAKES: <\/b>The rollout of electric school buses in New York state has been rocky. (The New York Times<\/a>)<\/p>\n
Missed this morning\u2019s New York Playbook? We forgive you. <\/b>Read it here<\/i><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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