New York Welcomes Kathy Hochul As First Female Governor; Who Is She?

After Andrew Cuomo resigned over sexual harassment claims, Kathy Hochul will become the first female governor of New York.

Hochul will take over as the governor of the United States' fourth most populous state in only two weeks.

In a statement published on Twitter on Tuesday morning, Hochul claimed she was "prepared" to take over Cuomo's position in the government.

But who is she, exactly?

The 62-year-old is a moderate Democrat from the Buffalo area of New York state, and her predecessor described her as "smart and competent."

She served as lieutenant governor in 2015, CBS said. She served in Congress from 2011 to 2013, representing New York's 26th District and serving on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Homeland Security Committee until losing her reelection bid.

Hochul comes from a steelworker family, she said on Twitter. She added that her grandparents fled poverty in Ireland before settling in New York.

She graduated from Syracuse University with a bachelor's degree and the Catholic University of America with a law degree. She then served as an adviser on Capitol Hill and local government jobs before being elected to Congress.

Hochul has spent her entire career advocating for women who have been victims of domestic and sexual violence. She was the driving force behind Governor Cuomo's "Enough is Enough" campaign to end sexual assault on college campuses.

With her mother and aunt, she founded the Kathleen Mary House, a transitional house for victims of domestic violence, in 2006.

When she was acting as the Eerie county clerk in 2008, the future governor sparked controversy by opposing then-governor Eliot Spitzer's plan to offer drivers' licenses to unauthorized immigrants. "It's a whole other era out there," she said ten years later, referring to her statements.

Last week, Hochul joined a chorus of legislators condemning Andrew Cuomo, saying his resignation on Tuesday was the "correct thing to do."

She tweeted that Cuomo's inquiry "documented repulsive & unlawful behaviour by the Governor towards multiple women."

Cuomo allegedly sexually harassed 11 women, including state employees, according to an independent investigation by the New York Attorney General's office.

Women claimed he made sexual comments, caressed or groped them improperly, and kissed them without their consent.

Cuomo has denied sexual harassment but has expressed his desire to apologize "truly, profoundly" to any woman his behavior may have hurt.

It's unknown whether Hochul would run for re-election in 2022.