Hochul Would Not Mandate Coronavirus Vaccines for Children ‘At This Time,’ Zeldin Pledges ‘Never’

New York Gov. (D) Kathy Hochul said during a debate on Tuesday that she would not mandate coronavirus vaccines to children “at this time,” while her opponent, New York Republican Lee Zeldin, would not do so “ever.”

 Hochul said she would not mandate the coronavirus mandate for children in school and would leave the issue to the legislature.

In response, Zeldin said he would not ever mandate the coronavirus vaccines for children. Zeldin said emphatically:

I will not mandate COVID vaccines for your kids ever. I don’t believe there should be COVID vaccine mandates for our kids in CUNY, in community colleges, and elsewhere. Where just over a year ago, a whole bunch of heroes were turned into zeroes because of my worker healthcare worker COVID mandate. I believe that mandate was wrong, and I believe that was fired should be offered their jobs back with back pay.

Hochul said in September 2021 that she would replace healthcare workers that refused to receive the coronavirus vaccine.

“To all the healthcare providers, doctors and nurses in particular who are vaccinated, I say thank you. Because you are keeping true to your oath,” Hochul said during a visit to Rochester. “To those who won’t, we will be replacing people.”

She has referred to unvaccinated workers as replaceable.

In one instance in September 2021, she said that those refusing the coronavirus vaccine “aren’t listening to God” during remarks at Brooklyn’s Christian Cultural Center.

She said:

He made the smartest men and women, the scientists, the doctors, the researchers – he made them come up with a vaccine. That is from God to us and we must say, thank you, God. Thank you. And I wear my ‘vaccinated’ necklace all the time to say I’m vaccinated. All of you, yes, I know you’re vaccinated, you’re the smart ones, but you know there’s people out there who aren’t listening to God and what God wants. You know who they are. [emphasis added]

Many workers were reportedly “very scared” as a result of Hochul’s healthcare worker vaccine mandate.