New York Gov. Kathy Hochul holds a commanding lead in this year’s gubernatorial race, outpacing Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman by more than 25 points among registered voters, according to a Siena Research Institute poll released Tuesday. The poll found Hochul leading Blakeman 54% to 28%, a margin little changed from December, while she also maintains strong support among Democrats and improved favorability ratings statewide. The Siena poll,...

In the blockbuster Senate race in Texas, where the combustible GOP primary has been grabbing most of the headlines, it’s the Democratic showdown that’s now being swept up in a political firestorm. State Rep. James Talarico, one of the two major Democrats running for their party’s nomination in the red-leaning state, was accused over the weekend by an influencer of calling his former rival a “mediocre Black man.” ...