Why is it so impossible to elect a Republican governor of New York? Maryland has a Republican governor. Massachusetts has a Republican governor. Both very popular governors too. Why can't New York elect a Republican governor?
I mean, I guess they "can" (and have), but New York City has been a Democratic bastion ... well ... since before the Civil War. The dynamic has ALWAYS been a Republican Upstate battling a Democratic Downstate. Problem is, Downstate is just so much more populated than Upstate now (13.7 million vs. 6 million), AND the GOP has lost ground in the Hudson Valley suburbs. Even if they gained that ground back, the old path to victory wouldn't exist, and they'd need to swing some NYC voters or just get almost unbelievable margins in the suburbs and Upstate (or have ridiculously low turnout in NYC).