New York Democrats are poised to gain unprecedented influence in Washington, with Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer in line to lead the House and Senate opposite President Donald Trump, who was born in Queens.
The potential shift in power came into view after Democrats won both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections. If Jeffries and Schumer secure their leadership votes in January, they would become the first people from the same state to lead both chambers since Texans Sam Rayburn and Lyndon Johnson held the roles until 1961.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul had predicted the state’s new influence at a rally in Brooklyn the night before the election.
“I cannot wait when I call up Hakeem Jeffries and say, ‘Mr. Speaker, I kind of need a few more billions of dollars for New York,’” she said. “Then I call Chuck Schumer: ‘Mr. Majority Leader, I need a few more billions of dollars for New York State.’ Get used to it, America. Because we’re in charge.”
Hochul later described the prospect of having both congressional leaders representing New York as a chance for the state to work with Washington rather than fight it.
“Can you imagine New York state having both leaders of both bodies in Congress?” she said. “Everybody’s going to want to move to New York because we’re the political club of the nation.”
Jeffries, a Brooklyn Democrat from Crown Heights, would become the first House speaker from New York State in almost 160 years. He would also be the first speaker from New York City and the first Black person to hold the post.
Schumer grew up in Brooklyn’s Midwood, while Trump was raised in Jamaica Estates, Queens. The three men spent their formative years within roughly 11 miles of one another.
New York Democrats and the fight for federal funding
The state’s priorities in Washington are expected to centre on major infrastructure projects and federal support for New Yorkers facing changes to public services.
One of the most significant demands is Gateway, the proposed 16 billion-dollar rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River. The project dates back to 2004 and survived the cancellation of an earlier version by former New Jersey governor Chris Christie in 2010.
Trump froze Gateway funding during a government shutdown last autumn, writing that money Schumer had spent 20 years securing had been terminated. He later suggested the funding could be restored if Penn Station and Dulles International Airport were renamed after him. A federal judge permanently blocked the freeze in July.
New York is also seeking federal backing for Sunnyside Yard, a Queens development plan that would create 12,000 homes over a rail yard. The mayor’s office has said the scheme would require more than 21 billion dollars in federal grants.
Trump discussed the project with New York mayor Zohran Mamdani during a visit to Gracie Mansion in September. He said he had been watching the site for 35 years and told Mamdani that the development would need federal approvals and probably federal money.
Other priorities include extending the Second Avenue subway and providing help to more than 20,000 people affected by changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme, as well as more than 400,000 facing changes to Medicaid.
Queens congressman Gregory Meeks predicted that New York “will get its fair share” following the Democrats’ election victory. Mamdani also said that having leaders “from our city and of our city” would be “of incredible importance”.
From fiscal crisis to political clout
The prospect of New York wielding such influence marks a sharp contrast with the city’s treatment by Washington during its 1975 fiscal crisis, when a famous newspaper headline declared: “Ford to City: Drop Dead.”
After Hurricane Sandy, New York’s congressional delegation sought about 60 billion dollars in federal aid but received slightly more than 27 billion. Former Republican congressman Pete King later said the outcome would have been different if New Yorkers had been in charge.
New York’s influence extends beyond Congress. Supreme Court justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan were born in New York City, while Chief Justice John Roberts was born in Buffalo. Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh was born in Albany.
The state also has other prominent figures in Washington, including Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lee Zeldin and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who leads the Democratic Party’s Senate campaign arm. New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is considering a 2028 presidential campaign or a Senate bid.
