Top Hochul aide Karen Persichilli Keogh makes rare public appearance

Karen Persichilli Keogh, the powerful secretary to the governor, made a rare public appearance Wednesday morning at a Citizens Budget Commission breakfast, where she answered questions about the administration alongside Director of State Operations Kathryn Garcia. The event highlighted the significant shift in approach to the influential position compared to Keogh’s predecessor. 

Five years ago, then-Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa, who served as former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s right hand, was a press conference mainstay. She was often in front of the cameras, frequently interacted with press and acted as one of Cuomo’s attack dogs. DeRosa graced the cover of Harper’s Bazaar, was interviewed for Elle and was generally a force of her own in the public space.

Not Keogh, who rarely appears in public with the governor and posts on X from an account that doesn’t even include a picture of her face. Her participation in the Citizens Budget Commission breakfast drew a crowd in part because of how unusual it was to see her speak. “I think the role is different depending on who the governor is or the time period in which you serve,” Keogh said when asked how she views her role. She described her own experience as twofold. “First, assembling the team, managing the senior team across all the verticals in the chamber,” Keogh said. “And overseeing the shift in culture and focus that was so needed.”

As two of Hochul’s top aides, Keogh and Garcia closely at the staff level with officials in the New York City mayor’s office to ensure continued smooth governance and cooperation between the city and state. Keogh’s participation in the breakfast event offered some insight into that ongoing relationship amid Mayor Eric Adams’ federal indictment, even as Hochul has projected confidence in his ability to continue through the strife. On Wednesday, Keogh echoed her boss, praising some of Adams’ new appointments as many of his advisers step down. “We are extraordinarily pleased with a lot of the appointments, particularly Maria Torres-Springer, who is just an exceptional public servant,” Keogh said. “I don’t see any glitches day to day… There’s obviously some distraction, but have not seen any glitches, per se.”

Both Keogh and Garcia answered a variety of questions about the state budget, climate goals and other topics of interest, but their response to an attendee asking about congestion pricing crystallized the administrative staff’s behind-the-scenes approach. The attendee asked what criteria may need to be met for congestion pricing to become unpaused. Their response? “We’re not going to make news today.”