But no matter where the truth lies, the reality is that Hochul’s popularity and approval have sagged drastically. She should have won this race by more than twenty points, and now it’s coming down to a nail-biter at the eleventh hour. But why? Why would so many New Yorkers turn their backs on the chance to make her the first elected female governor in the state’s history? Some of the analysts watching these events unfold think they’ve struck upon the answer. In case you hadn’t already guessed, it’s because she’s a woman. (Duh.) And in the eyes of the patriarchy, she’s just not “likable” enough. She’s even being compared to Hillary Clinton in that regard. (City and State NY)
Gender is one of many factors in the governor’s race – but it could be a big one. Gov. Kathy Hochul campaigning with Hillary Clinton yesterday got some people in the political world talking about whether Hochul – in her bid to be the first woman elected governor – is struggling with the same gender-related “likability” issues that may have contributed to Clinton’s defeat in the 2016 presidential race.
“I think it really goes to an unconscious bias,” said one woman in politics, who asked for anonymity because she wasn’t authorized to speak for her employer. “I think she’s much more likable than Hillary Clinton, but in an election where crime and public safety is the No. 1 issue, does it hurt her where she’s a woman, and not an aggressive man? Yes.”
So is being a woman hurting Hochul at the polls? “That’s not the question, that’s a given,” said political consultant Alexis Grenell, who’s written extensively about gender and politics. “Zeldin has been attacking her for her lack of leadership. Women are more vulnerable to this kind of attack because every piece of data we have shows that the qualities and adjectives we associate with the leadership concept are coded as male.”
So this is all a matter of secret “coding,” eh? By virtue of being a woman, she’s not seen as a strong enough leader. And Lee Zeldin has been “attacking” her by questioning her leadership and her inability to do anything about the issues that matter to New Yorkers. Imagine the nerve of that guy!“I think it really goes to an unconscious bias,” said one woman in politics, who asked for anonymity because she wasn’t authorized to speak for her employer. “I think she’s much more likable than Hillary Clinton, but in an election where crime and public safety is the No. 1 issue, does it hurt her where she’s a woman, and not an aggressive man? Yes.”
So is being a woman hurting Hochul at the polls? “That’s not the question, that’s a given,” said political consultant Alexis Grenell, who’s written extensively about gender and politics. “Zeldin has been attacking her for her lack of leadership. Women are more vulnerable to this kind of attack because every piece of data we have shows that the qualities and adjectives we associate with the leadership concept are coded as male.”
Even Hochul’s supporters in the political analysis game aren’t being much help to her. Describing her as being “much more likable than Hillary Clinton” (as you saw in the excerpt above) isn’t exactly a glowing endorsement. Blaming her association with Andrew Cuomo, as is also being done, doesn’t seem to tell the whole story either.
Perhaps instead of trying to read the gender-based tea leaves, these analysts could spend some time looking at the things Hochul has actually said and done, or not done, since taking office and over the course of the campaign. Crime has consistently been either the number one or number two issue listed by likely voters in recent polls. But during her last debate with Zeldin, Hochul actually laughed aloud when she was asked about the issue of putting criminals away in jail and questioned why crime was “so important” to Zeldin.
