Surprise Exits, Budget Pressure, Campaign Struggles

From the Lobby with Jack O'Donnell · Feb 12, 2026 · 10m

A lot is happening in New York politics this week, and not all of it was expected.

There are surprise exits. Big budget pressure. And cities across the state asking Albany for help… loudly.

On this episode of From the Lobby with Jack O’Donnell, we break down what’s really going on and what it could mean next.

Jack O’Donnell, Managing Partner of O’Donnell &Associates, joins us from the Lobby to walk through the biggest moves from Albany to D.C.

We get into:

Why Governor Hochul’s lieutenant governor ended his run for governor

A wave of powerful lawmakers deciding not to run again and what that…