State Party Chairman Jay Jacobs gathered the media at his Nassau County headquarters to announce his support for Gov. Kathy Hochul in the upcoming June primary. It was an unusual move for a party chair, coming at a time when the race is just getting underway.

"This business, loyalty unfortunately is a scarce commodity. And for me, I remember that loyalty is a two-way street," Jacobs said. "Kathy Hochul has earned the support that she is getting from me, at least, today. And I believe every county chair ought to think the same."

When it comes to loyalty, Jacobs was in lockstep with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who appointed him to the party chair position in 2019. Jacobs did eventually call on Cuomo to resign.

But it was a comment in response to our question about how often he still talks to the former governor that got the attention of many Democrats.

"Yeah, I have. I called Governor Cuomo today to let him know what I was doing. It was a courtesy call. I called all the leaders. I have spoken with each of the major, or who would consider being a major candidate, almost all of them, not all of them."

Hochul held an unrelated event in Brooklyn Monday. She was asked whether she thinks it’s appropriate for Jacobs to not only be talking to the former governor, but giving him a heads up before endorsing her.

"I truly don’t know. I don’t know the circumstances. That is certainly a question for him," she said. "I am proud to have the support of Jay Jacobs, Rich Schaefer and anyone else who wants to line up behind me. But they know that is not my focus."

Another potential candidate in the race, state Attorney General Letitia James, declined to comment on the situation.

“Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who recently formed an exploratory committee to run for governor himself, issued a statement critical of Jacobs for putting his thumb on the scale for Hochul and trying to stop a Democratic primary. He also pointed out that Jacobs had not endorsed the winner of the Democratic Mayoral primary in Buffalo, India Walton who considers herself a socialist.