You Decide with Errol Louis

After a sweeping of series of victories for Democrats from Albany to the State Capitol to the halls of Congress, NY1's Errol Louis broke down the "blue wave" with Spectrum News New York political director Bob Hardt. To look at the political ascendancy of Brooklyn's Chuck Schumer in the Senate and Hakeem Jeffries in the House, they're also joined by NY1's Washington, D.C. reporter Shannon Ryan. The...

Award-winning journalist and former Long Island Congressional candidate John Avlon joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss next week's elections in New York and across the country. They explored Long Island's politics and discussed competitive Senate and gubernatorial races in some unexpected states. Citing President Donald Trump's low approval among independent voters, Avlon described Democrats' clos...

The New York Daily News was America's first tabloid and quickly became the country's best-selling newspaper, reaching millions of readers and reshaping how Americans consumed the news. A new book, "The People's Paper: The Rise & Fall of the NY Daily News" by Matthew Pressman, explores how the Daily News both reflected and shaped a changing New York City.  Pressman joined NY1's Errol Louis to discu...

Errol Louis and co-moderator Susan Arbetter discussed the first and only debate in New York's gubernatorial race between Gov. Kathy Hochul and her Republican challenger, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, which was produced and aired by NY1 and Spectrum News. They offer a behind-the-scenes look at preparations that began in August, with a roughly 10-person team developing and refining questio...

In the second installment of NY1's exclusive series "Out of Office with the Mayor," Mayor Zohran Mamdani rode the Staten Island Ferry with NY1 political anchor Errol Louis to the only borough he lost on Election Day. They discussed Pete Davidson's doubts about the mayor, coastal resiliency 14 years after Hurricane Sandy, his meeting with President Donald Trump at Gracie Mansion, the anniversary of...

Jeff Coltin is editor-in-chief of City & State NY, recently returning to the magazine and news site where he spent a decade building his career covering New York politics. The magazine is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a special edition examining the city's power players from a variety of perspectives. Coltin joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss his return to City & State and the magazine's...

Sam Roberts is a longtime New York urban affairs journalist and an obituary writer for The New York Times. His new book, "Are They Dead Yet? The Art of the Obit" chronicles the craft of writing obituaries and the stories behind them. Roberts joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss the differences between obituary writing and long-form biography, the taboo against speaking ill of the dead, the use of e...

Hundreds of judges sit on the bench in New York City, deciding the fate of criminal defendants. But how did they get their jobs in the first place? It's a surprisingly complicated question that NY1 investigative reporter Courtney Gross explores in her special series, "Building the Bench." She examined how local political parties control the process and select favored judicial candidates, often lea...

Republican candidate for governor Bruce Blakeman joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss why he believes New Yorkers are "miserable" under Gov. Kathy Hochul, pointing to high taxes, rising electric bills, the state's economic outlook, the loss of residents and businesses and billions of dollars spent on asylum seekers. The Nassau County executive talked about how he differs from past Republican gubern...

It's been 25 years since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. NY1 is marking the anniversary in a variety of ways, including a special episode of "You Decide" in which Errol Louis was joined by two longtime NY1 journalists who covered the attacks that day: Pat Kiernan and Cheryl Wills. Kiernan recalled learning that the first plane had struck the World Trade Center during his "In the Papers" segment an...

Spectrum News 1 North Carolina political anchor Tim Boyum and NY1's Errol Louis have a combined 50 years of experience covering politics and have witnessed countless changes in the political landscape. One recent movement that has caught their attention is the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America.  Boyum joined Louis to discuss why the DSA has gained popularity, particularly among younger...

Maggie Haberman is a White House correspondent for The New York Times. The New York City native is the author of "Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America." She is also the co-author, with Jonathan Swan, of a new book, "Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump," which lays out the first year of President Trump's second presidency.  Haberman joined...

In a plan that's now being echoed by the Trump administration, New York City has helped close to 400,000 public school students and their families pay for college by creating savings accounts, which include start-up seed money. Joining NY1's Errol Louis to discuss the program was City Council Speaker Julie Menin, who helped launch NYC Kids RISE in 2015 when she was the city's Consumer Affairs Comm...

Former N.Y. state Sen. Daniel Squadron believes that state legislatures are becoming successful laboratories for smart politics and good policy. Since leaving Albany, Squadron helped found The States Project, an organization that works to strengthen state legislatures by helping build better-funded, more effective state legislative campaigns. Squadron joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss his new bo...

Journalist David Roth left the popular sports and culture website Deadspin during the staff's 2019 mass resignation after its new owners pushed for less political commentary and a greater focus on sports. Roth and many of his former colleagues went on to launch Defector Media, a worker-owned, subscription-based publication. Roth joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss the split from Deadspin, building...

In 1988, Janet Fash made history as New York City's first female chief lifeguard. She recounted her journey in a new memoir, "Lifeguard: A Love Story," which is making waves across the city. Fash joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss her working-class upbringing in Park Slope, how she discovered Rockaway's ocean-beach culture, the demands and dangers of lifeguarding and the safety protocols she help...

This year, New York City under Mayor Zohran Mamdani has looked like a different city after Eric Adams' turbulent term. The contrast is stark: Adams-era crises have given way to a wildly popular first six months for Mamdani, which includes excitement around the World Cup and a long-awaited New York Knicks championship. Katie Honan, who covers City Hall for newsoutlet The City Reporter and co-hosts...

Is labor union influence in New York shifting? Recent elections have raised new questions about the political value of a major labor union endorsement. Andrew Cuomo secured backing from many prominent unions in the 2025 mayoral primary but lost to Zohran Mamdani, while Antonio Reynoso fell to Claire Valdez in a congressional race despite broad labor support. NY1 statehouse reporter Bernadette Hoga...

In 1995, Allen Porter was convicted of a double murder in Queens. He spent nearly 34 years in prison, maintaining his innocence every step of the way. On Jan. 30 of this year, a Queens judge vacated his conviction, but the case is far from over. Porter, who is out on bond and wearing an ankle monitor, and his attorney, Charles Linehan, joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss why Porter remains in lega...

Steve Kornacki is the chief data analyst at NBC News and a familiar face to anyone who watches election night coverage. He joined NY1's Errol Louis to discuss this week's surprising New York Democratic primary, where multiple democratic socialist candidates backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani won, including Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier, while several incumbents suffered unexpected defeat...

Patrick Gaspard has worn an array of political hats — from U.S. Ambassador to South Africa to President Barack Obama's political director to special assistant to New York City Mayor David Dinkins. An adviser to Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Gaspard was recently appointed the chairman of the Mamdani administration's Commission on Government Efficiency, also known as COGE, which began holding public hearing...

The five leading candidates in the Democratic primary for New York's 12th Congressional District in Manhattan squared off this week in a spirited debate hosted by NY1, seeking to draw sharp contrasts ahead of Election Day. The debate was moderated by NY1's Errol Louis, WNYC host Brian Lehrer and WNYC senior political reporter Brigid Bergin. Bergin joined "You Decide" to discuss the behind-the-scen...

The Democratic primary in New York's 13th Congressional District has become one of the more intriguing races of this election season, with longtime incumbent Adriano Espaillat facing a serious challenge from Darializa Avila Chevalier, who has secured endorsements from Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the city's chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. The contest has emerged as a test of generatio...

A.M. Gittlitz is an organizer and writer whose work focuses on the counterculture and radical politics. He is also the author of the New York Times bestseller "Metropolitans: New York Baseball, Class Struggle, and the People's Team," a love letter to the New York Mets and a sweeping study of New York City through the electric and often calamitous history of the franchise. Gittlitz joined NY1 polit...

Steve Fulop is the president and CEO of Partnership for New York City, an invitation-only organization of about 350 of the city's leading business executives and major employers. He recently succeeded longtime Partnership President and CEO Kathryn Wylde. Before joining the Partnership, Fulop served as mayor of Jersey City for 12 years and was a candidate for governor of New Jersey in 2025. Fulop j...