New York Governor 2026: the ads, and who's paying for them
Kathy Hochul (Democrat) and Bruce Blakeman (Republican) are the candidates for governor of New York in the November 3, 2026 general election. Kathy Hochul is the incumbent. Semblen has analyzed 76 ads in this race; 44 used at least one manipulation technique, most often loaded language and name calling.
Kathy Hochul (DEM, incumbent), Bruce Blakeman (REP).
On the ballot as listed by Ballotpedia. 76 ads analyzed, 44 with at least one technique in the copy.
Newest first. The paid-for-by line is the advertiser's own filing. Updated 2026-10-08.
42 of 74 (57%) flagged · Loaded Language (31), Name Calling (21), Appeal to Fear (17)
YouTube
2 of 2 flagged · Bandwagon Appeal (2), Appeal to Fear (1), Appeal to Prejudice (1)
Reported Meta spend
$333,300–432,067 on all ads, $196,300–251,366 on flagged ads · Meta reports ranges; these are the sums of their ends
Example
“High Taxes, Rising Utility Rates” — Loaded Language, paid for by Blakeman for New York
· the flagged ad with the highest reported spend that shows the most common technique
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A small box with these findings and the newest ads, updated as new ads are analyzed. Free for newsrooms, blogs and campaigns alike; it links back here.
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Each side is the campaign plus the groups backing it. How a group is placed is explained below the table.
Side
Ads
With at least one technique
Most common
Hochul (D)
18
7 of 18 (39%)
Loaded Language (6), Name Calling (5), Appeal to Fear (2)
All from the campaign; no ads here from groups placed on this side.
Blakeman (R)
33
20 of 33 (61%)
Loaded Language (12), Glittering Generalities (10), Appeal to Fear (7)
All from the campaign; no ads here from groups placed on this side.
Not placed on a side (15 sponsors)
25
17 of 25 (68%)
Loaded Language (13), Name Calling (11), Appeal to Fear (9)
Read this before comparing the sides. Ads that attack an opponent use these techniques far more often than ads that introduce a candidate, whoever runs them, so the side running more attack ads shows a higher share. A technique is about wording, not about whether an ad is true. These are online ads only (Meta and YouTube), not television.
How a group is placed: by its own filings with the Federal Election Commission. A group is with a candidate when it reported spending to support that candidate, or to oppose the other one in the general election. The parties' own committees are with their nominee. Spending against a candidate in a primary places a group nowhere, and neither does our reading of its ads: a group with no such filing is listed as not placed. The sponsor table gives the reason for each.
Decide what counts
Not everyone would call every technique manipulation. Untick the ones you'd call ordinary persuasion and the count updates.
58% of the 76 ads here use at least one of the techniques ticked below (44 ads).
Leaving out the softer ones (loaded language, glittering generalities, slogans, exaggeration, repetition): 49% of ads.
The words doing the work
The words that show up most in phrases our model flagged as loaded language or name calling in this race's ads, by number of ads.
billin 5 ads· e.g. “skyrocketing utility bills”, “skyrocketing electric bills”
MAGAin 5 ads· e.g. “MAGA extremism”, “New York MAGA extremism”
policyin 4 ads· e.g. “pro-criminal policies”, “destructive anti-energy policies”
criminalin 3 ads· e.g. “Hochul's New York: were criminals roam free”, “criminals roam free”
hochul'in 3 ads· e.g. “Hochul's New York: were criminals roam free”, “Kathy Hochul's fraud and abuse”
pro-criminalin 3 ads· e.g. “pro-criminal policies”, “most pro-criminal governor in America”
worst governorin 3 ads· e.g. “WORST Governor in America”, “the worst Governor in America”
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Money in this race
Candidates for governor report their fundraising to New York's state campaign-finance office, not the FEC. This page doesn't cover those reports yet, so it shows no money figures.
The ads
76 ads, newest first. Video transcripts are shown as the model read them, without caption cues like [music].
Showing the 5 ads paid for by Hernandez for New York. Show all 76 ads
Paid for by Hernandez for New Yorkfrom 2026-10-062 variantsspend $500–6984,000–5,998 impressions
New York is losing billions to fraud, waste, and one-party rule, and the current Comptroller has been silent through all of it. That is why Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is endorsing Joseph Hernandez for New York State Comptroller. Bruce turned Nassau around. He knows Joseph will do the same for Albany.
A $10 donation today is worth $70 with the 6-to-1 state match.
Loaded Language: The phrase 'one-party rule' is emotionally charged, implying authoritarian or corrupt governance rather than simply describing a political majority — for example: one-party rule
Exaggeration/Hyperbole: Claiming the state is 'losing billions' to fraud and waste without evidence or qualification overstates the scale to provoke alarm — for example: losing billions to fraud, waste
Appeal to Fear: The sentence creates anxiety about massive financial loss and governmental failure to pressure the audience toward supporting the endorsed candidate — for example: losing billions to fraud, waste, and one-party rule
Glittering Generalities: The vague claim that Bruce 'turned Nassau around' uses positive but unsubstantiated language to build credibility without specifying any concrete achievement — for example: turned Nassau around and do the same for Albany.
Loaded Language
Exaggeration/Hyperbole
Appeal to Fear
Glittering Generalities
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Loaded Language: The words 'fraud and abuse' are emotionally charged accusations used to trigger a negative reaction toward Kathy Hochul rather than convey verified facts — for example: fraud and abuse and stop her waste.
Name Calling: Kathy Hochul is labeled as committing 'fraud and abuse' without substantiation, functioning as a derogatory characterization to discredit her — for example: 'Kathy Hochul's fraud and abuse'
False Urgency: The imperative 'Help... stop' creates a sense of immediate action required, pressuring the reader to act without deliberation — for example: 'Help Joseph Hernandez stop her waste'
Loaded Language
Name Calling
False Urgency
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Hernandez for New Yorkfrom 2026-10-02 to 2026-10-04spend $0–99100–999 impressions
I’m honored to have Bruce Blakeman’s endorsement and support.
Bruce knows what it takes to stand up for New Yorkers, demand accountability, and deliver results. I’m proud to have him in this fight with me.
Glittering Generalities: Vague, emotionally positive phrases like 'stand up for New Yorkers', 'demand accountability', and 'deliver results' sound noble but carry no specific meaning or substance — for example: 'stand up for New Yorkers, demand accountability, and deliver results'
Slogans: Catchy phrase used to compress a complex position into an emotionally loaded shorthand.
Glittering Generalities
Slogans
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
An email when new ads come in from either side or the outside groups: the techniques, the words doing the work, and who paid. And each debate's analysis the morning after. One-click unsubscribe.
Paid for by Hernandez for New Yorkfrom 2026-10-01 to 2026-10-03spend $0–99100–999 impressions
I’m proud to have Bruce Blakeman’s support as we fight to bring real accountability back to New York.
Together, we’re ready to protect taxpayers, root out waste and fraud, and fire the worst Governor in America.
Bandwagon Appeal: The word 'Together' implies collective unity and group momentum, pressuring conformity through a sense of shared movement — for example: Together, we're ready
Glittering Generalities: Vague, emotionally positive phrases like 'protect taxpayers' and 'root out waste and fraud' sound noble but carry no specific policy substance — for example: protect taxpayers, root out waste and fraud
Name Calling: The label 'worst Governor in America' is a derogatory superlative used to discredit a person rather than address their record with evidence — for example: the worst Governor in America
Exaggeration/Hyperbole: Calling someone 'the worst Governor in America' is an extreme absolute superlative that goes beyond what evidence could reasonably support — for example: worst Governor in America
Bandwagon Appeal
Glittering Generalities
Name Calling
Exaggeration/Hyperbole
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Hernandez for New Yorkfrom 2026-10-01 to 2026-10-032 variantsspend $0–198200–1,998 impressions
Bruce Blakeman’s endorsement adds strong support to Joseph Hernandez’s campaign for New York State Comptroller.
Supporters who want to help Joseph Hernandez bring principled leadership to New York can donate now and help power the campaign forward.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
An ad is on this page because its own "Paid for by" line is a campaign in this race; or it ran mostly in NY and names a nominee for governor — unless its sponsor is a campaign for some other office (a U.S. Senate or House campaign included), or it also names NY's Senate nominees, in which case it is on the Senate race's page. Ads from outside groups appear alongside the campaigns' own.
The candidates are the ones certified for the November ballot, from the source linked at the top. Governors are state offices, so there are no FEC filings behind this page: no money figures, and outside groups are placed on a side only when they are a campaign or a party committee.
Campaigns run one text as many separate ads. Identical text from the same sponsor is one card here, marked with its number of variants.
A technique is a specific manipulative move in the wording, found by our model and explained in one line. It is not a claim that the ad is false.
Claims are checked when a reader asks: press "Check this ad's claims" on a card. The check runs once and its result is shown to everyone afterwards. The ten ads with the most money behind them in each race are checked ahead of time.
Claim verdicts say what the cited sources say. A verdict that an ad is wrong or misleading is shown only when it cites an established fact-checker or an institutional record — Congress, a federal agency, a court — and its confidence is not low; a weaker one is not shown at all. Each verdict shows what it rests on and how confident it is. If we got one wrong, press Disagree: a verdict that readers dispute and no one defends comes down.
Video ads come from the campaigns' own YouTube channels; the transcript is analyzed. Meta ads are analyzed on their text; their video and images are not, yet.
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