Gov. Kathy Hochul has been named the nation’s worst governor for protecting residents’ freedoms, according to a sharply critical new study.
Hochul placed 50th — last overall — in the Cato Institute’s 2026 “Freedom in the 50 States” rankings. She received an “F,” trailing the governors of Hawaii, California, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
The annual report examines economic and personal policies across the states, including taxation, housing, occupational rules, education, gun rights, free speech and medical regulation. Each state receives a score out of 100 based on how strongly its laws support individual freedom in those areas.
The 2026 edition marked the first time the institute separately evaluated individual governors, measuring whether their decisions in office expanded or restricted freedom within their states.
Hochul earned just 18.02% for the extent to which her administration’s policies were judged to advance New Yorkers’ freedoms.
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New York also performed poorly in the broader state rankings, placing 49th nationwide with an overall freedom score of 31.9%. Only Hawaii, at 29.24%, ranked lower.
While the governor rankings showed a clear partisan tilt at both ends of the list, the overall results did not fall neatly along red-and-blue lines.
Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis finished second among governors for promoting freedom, while Arizona — led by Democrats — ranked first overall among states for freedom.
The bottom 10 also included three traditionally right-leaning states — Alabama, South Carolina and Alaska — along with two Republican governors.
Even so, Republicans occupied most of the highest-ranked positions, while Democrats were more heavily represented near the bottom, the Cato Institute reported.
Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte posted the strongest gubernatorial result, scoring 62.31% and receiving an “A.” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ranked third with 52.61%, followed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in fourth at 50.67%.
Arizona, which supported Donald Trump in the 2024 election but is governed by Democrat Katie Hobbs, led the state rankings. Montana followed in second, Nevada placed third and Florida came in fourth.
