Governor of New York Kathy Hochul, pictured here in February 2022.Getty Images
Kathy Hochul, the Governor of New York, will visit Ireland this week, making stops in Dublin and Killarney.
Governor Hochul, the granddaughter of Irish immigrants, will be in Ireland from May 17 through May 20.
She will meet with senior government officials and key business leaders in Dublin before heading to Killarney, Co Kerry where she will deliver a keynote address on "The Future of Cities" at the inaugural Global Economic Summit, a global convening aimed at addressing challenges including the climate crisis and economic inequality.
Before heading to Ireland, Hochul is visiting Italy and the Vatican on Wednesday and Thursday to participate in the Pontifical Academy of Science and the Pontifical Academy of Social Science’s three-day joint summit, From Climate Crisis to Climate Resilience. The Governor will deliver an address on “Climate Leadership in the Empire State: Building Resiliency for All."
Hochul will depart Ireland for New York on May 20.
Previously the Lieutenant Governor of New York, Hochul assumed the role of Governor in September 2021 in the wake of Governor Andrew Cuomo's resignation.
That same month, she met with then Taoiseach Micheál Martin during his visit to New York.
In November 2022, she became the first-ever female to be elected as the Governor of New York after she beat Republican opponent Lee Zeldin.
Despite being generationally removed from Ireland, Hochul - who was born Kathleen Mary Courtney - has frequently said that her Irish heritage was a key part of her upbringing.
Her grandparents John 'Jack' Patrick Courtney and Mary Bridget (Browne) Courtney met in Chicago after leaving the same area of Co Kerry. They later settled in upstate New York where they helped found the still-active Buffalo Irish Center.
In her inaugural address in 2022, Hochul referenced her Irish immigrant grandparents: "Everyone, no matter where they came from, how they got here - to those whose ancestors came here in bondage on slave ships, and others who saw opportunity and saw New York as a shining beacon, drawing millions from every corner of the planet, just like my impoverished grandparents left Ireland as teenagers came through Ellis Island.
“And because of that, we are home to the most diverse population - people of every color, creed, national origin, and orientation call New York home.
"And for the next four years, our sole mission will be to lift up every New Yorker and make a difference in their lives, so their tomorrows will be better than their yesterdays.”