New York Gov. Hochul takes early lead ahead of Republican opponent Rep. Lee Zeldin

Gov. Hochul held an early lead Tuesday as she sought to become the first woman elected governor of New York with initial results showing her ahead of Republican challenger Lee Zeldin.

Preliminary results released after polls closed at 9 p.m. showed the incumbent Democrat, seeking a full term in office, fairing well across most of the five boroughs, reflecting the city’s strong blue base.

Shortly before 10 p.m., Hochul was besting Zeldin 58% to 40% with roughly two million votes counted, according to unofficial results from the state Board of Elections.

Hochul’s win was far from certain even in deep blue New York as she faced off against Zeldin, a Donald Trump-endorsed Long Island congressman whose focus on crime boosted his bid to become the first Republican elected statewide in over two decades.

Democrats gathered at Capitale, an event space with Greek-style architecture and a glass ceiling, in Lower Manhattan to await results.

Hochul was vaulted to the pinnacle of New York politics last year after sexual harassment allegations prompted the resignation of Andrew Cuomo.

A Buffalo native and former one-term member of Congress, Hochul served as Cuomo’s second-in-command for seven years before his stunning downfall led to her ascension 14 months ago.

The 64-year-old declared her intention to run for a full term shortly before taking over the reins of state government from her predecessor, vowing to help people “believe in their government again.”

Hochul cruised to victory in June’s Democratic primary and entered the general election against Zeldin as a commanding front-runner with a well stocked campaign war chest.

In a state where Democrats vastly outnumber Republicans, Hochul appeared to have the race squared away with summer polling showing a double-digit lead.

[ Live 2022 election results in the Democratic and Republican primary races ]

Zeldin, a conservative congressman from Suffolk County with close ties to Trump, gained ground in recent months as he hammered Hochul over crime and inflation.

The race narrowed as Zeldin trimmed his campaign down to a near-singular focus on public safety and vowed to undo Dem-backed criminal justice reforms such as cashless bail.

He pledged to declare a crime emergency, fire Alvin Bragg, Manhattan’s progressive district attorney, and described his candidacy as a “rescue mission.”

He attempted to align himself with Mayor Adams, even as the Democrat and former cop endorsed Hochul and toned down his rhetoric on criminal justice issues, and implored disaffected Dems to back his bid.

One such supporter was Ruben Diaz Sr., a former City Council member, who said he crossed party lines in an attempt to attempt to wake fellow Dems up to the impact violent crime is having in Black and brown communities.

The veteran Bronx pol said crime is not nearly as bad as it was in the city in the 80s and 90s when it reached its height, but worried that “it’s getting there.”

“I’m trying to send an S.O.S. We need help,” Diaz, clad in his signature cowboy hat, said as he joined Zeldin backers at the candidate’s election night watch party at Cipriani in Midtown Manhattan. “This is not about Democrat or Republican. This is about our children, our families, about our city, about our state about our senior citizens so I gotta do what I gotta do.”

Zeldin raced around the city in recent weeks, appearing at crime scene after crime scene and painting Hochul as out of touch with New Yorkers’ concerns.

Adding to his late race momentum, a pair of conservative Super PACs backing his bid flooded the airwaves with anti-Hochul ads.

The governor, meanwhile, spent much of her campaign calling out Zeldin over his anti-abortion stance, his allegiance to Trump and his vote against certifying the results of the 2020 election.

Hochul accused Zeldin of fearmongering and touted her work with Adams on strengthening subway security with more cops and cameras in the wake of a spate of high profile violent incidents.

“He has been hyperventilating, trying to scare people for months and New Yorkers are onto it,” the governor said on Monday. “All the legitimate media organizations have called him out for what he is doing, fear-mongering.”

In the final weeks of the campaign, concern mounted among Hochul’s fellow Dems as party leaders from President Biden to former secretary of state Hillary Clinton joined the governor at rallies around the state.

“I’m going to make it real simple for everybody,” Hochul said at an event Sunday in Yonkers with Biden. “Do you want to have good-paying jobs? Then vote Democrat. Do you want to protect our environment for generations to come? Then just vote Democrat.”