Cuomo Joins Governors Facing Lawmakers’ Push to Curb Covid Power

Governors whose coronavirus responses depend on emergency orders are fiercely guarding their executive authority against state lawmakers who want a bigger role in managing the pandemic.

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) promptly issued a new mask mandate Feb. 4 after the Republican-dominated legislature repealed one, and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) is suing his state’s GOP legislature over limits on his authority. Pennsylvania voters will decide in May whether to amend the state constitution to restrict the emergency powers of Gov. Tom Wolf (D).

The conflicts extend to states like Ohio, Arizona, and New York, where legislative leaders and the ...