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Vetted coverage of Governor Hochul's administration, grouped by day. Every item names its publication and carries a source-credibility tier — Tier 1 primary/wire, Tier 2 established outlet, Tier 3 secondary. No spin; each story links to its original source.

2 items

Sep 16, 2026

1
Votebeat (Dion Nissenbaum); NPR (Hansi Lo Wang)TIER 1High

Supreme Court refuses to revive Trump's mail-ballot restrictions for November: in an unsigned Sept. 14 order the justices leave the Boston injunction in place, saying the government is "unlikely to succeed on the merits"; only Alito and Thomas dissent, and New York, a plaintiff state, will run its Nov. 3 general election under existing mail-voting rules

On Monday night, Sept. 14, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the Trump administration's application to lift Judge Indira Talwani's Sept. 4 preliminary injunction against the U.S. Postal Service's final ballot-mail rule, the vehicle for Trump's March 31 executive order restricting mail voting. The brief unsigned order (No. 26A305) says the government "is unlikely to succeed on the merits of its challenge." Justice Kavanaugh concurred, writing there is "at least a fair prospect" the rule is within USPS authority but that applying it in 2026 would be arbitrary and capricious because election officials lack time to implement it; Justices Alito and Thomas dissented. A second judge issued a separate injunction in DSCC v. Trump on Sept. 13. Practical effect: USPS keeps delivering ballots as usual and the November election, including New York's Nov. 3 general, proceeds under existing mail and absentee rules. The legal fight over future elections continues. New York was one of 24 jurisdictions that sued in April; AG Letitia James said she was "truly relieved." Trump called the ruling "a big loss for Republicans." Hochul, on NY1 the next evening, said "elections will be secure in New York State no matter what the Trump administration tries." Supersedes the Aug. 24 order that lifted the first injunction on procedural grounds.

Sep 12, 2026

1
SCOTUSblog (Kelsey Dallas)TIER 1High

Hochul's Aug. 28 pardon of Keisy Guerrero Mariano moots a Supreme Court immigration-detention case: on Sept. 11 the justices dismissed Genalo v. Black, set for argument Oct. 13, after Solicitor General Sauer and the ACLU jointly stipulated the pardon ended his deportability

One of the six pardons in Hochul's Aug. 28 rolling clemency batch went to Keisy Guerrero Mariano (identified in court papers as Keisy G.M.), a lawful permanent resident whose 2015 second-degree assault conviction made him deportable and subject to mandatory ICE detention; the 2nd Circuit ruled in 2024 that his 21 months in detention without a bond hearing violated due process, and the Trump administration's appeal (Genalo v. Black, No. 25-886) was granted June 15 and scheduled for argument Oct. 13. Because the pardon removes the basis for deportation and detention, ACLU legal director Cecillia Wang argued in the Aug. 31 merits brief that the case was moot; Solicitor General D. John Sauer agreed in a Sept. 11 letter, the parties filed a joint stipulation, and the Court dismissed the case the same day. Sauer said DOJ will look for another vehicle to bring the question back this term. The 2nd Circuit precedent requiring bond hearings after prolonged detention stays in place. The governor's Aug. 28 release described the batch as recipients who had lived crime-free for a significant period; it did not mention the pending Supreme Court case. Reaction so far is from outside New York: Iowa Solicitor General Eric Wessan called it "pretty wild to fully pardon an aggravated felon" to block deportation and a Supreme Court ruling; ACLU/NYCLU called it a victory for due process. Fox News says it asked Hochul's office for comment; no response reported yet, and no Blakeman statement found as of Sept. 12.