It’s hard to believe that it’s nearly two decades since Gov. George Pataki left office in 2006 — the last New York governor to do so not because he had to, but because he chose to.

Serving three consecutive terms as a Republican leader in a predominantly Democratic state, Pataki was renowned for his disciplined presence and unflappable bearing — a steady hand in turbulent times.

Pataki’s demeanor stands in sharp contrast to today’s political era, which prioritizes performative posturing and viral moments. He focused on results. On governing. On delivering for the people he served.

He was, most often, intentionally vanilla — a deliberate calm in a chaotic business, in a state with a 3-1 Democrat enrollment advantage. This disciplined approach kept largely hidden from public view a sharp but disarming sense of humor.

As a politician, he was virtually invincible — racking up wins as Peekskill mayor, assemblyman and state senator. Along the way, he unseated a Republican incumbent state senator before going on to pull off one of the biggest upsets in modern political history: dethroning the liberal lion Mario Cuomo in 1994 to become governor of the Empire State.

Politically, he recognized the growing influence of Hispanic voters and made the effort to reach them — not with pandering, but with respect. He learned Spanish, much of it from conversations with his state police protective detail, and often joked that they were his unofficial tutors. But he always returned to one core belief: the needs of voters are the same — safety, opportunity, education. What matters is that leaders take the time to show up and speak their language — literally and figuratively.

SWEEPING ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Pataki’s list of accomplishments is extensive: He drastically reduced welfare rolls, cut taxes for 12 consecutive years, preserved over a million acres of open space and protected New York City’s watershed for future generations. He expanded educational opportunity by establishing charter schools, which now serve hundreds of thousands of underprivileged children.

He envisioned and brought to life a new waterfront on Manhattan’s west side through the creation of the Hudson River Park Trust, transforming the area into a vibrant destination. He launched the state’s first large-scale brownfield cleanup program, turning contaminated properties into usable land.

And he laid the groundwork for New York’s emergence as a hub of high-tech economic development — including the rise of the semiconductor industry — through strategic investments in Upstate infrastructure and research institutions.

When Pataki left office, the unemployment rate in New York was the lowest since the state started measuring it — not just in traditional centers of commerce, but in boroughs like the Bronx and Queens, where opportunity had long lagged behind.

When it came to crime, the former governor often said that protecting citizens was the most important responsibility of government — and he governed like he meant it. Under his leadership, New York went from being the most dangerous state in the country to the fourth safest.

This transformation didn’t happen by accident. It wasn’t just the result of city-level policing. It was due to state-level reforms that ended the revolving door of justice and kept violent offenders behind bars. Sadly, that progress has been undone by the return of a soft-on-crime agenda in Albany — and New Yorkers are feeling the consequences.

LEADERSHIP AFTER 9/11

Perhaps most vividly, Pataki’s legacy is remembered through his indispensable leadership after 9/11. Once the fires at Ground Zero cooled and the nation faced the daunting task of rebuilding, the governor stood as a pillar of both strength and compassion. He had the vision and determination to reclaim the World Trade Center site — foreseeing the symbolic importance of the Freedom Tower soaring 1,776 feet into the sky and establishing the 9/11 Memorial, now one of the most visited sites in the world.

But what set him apart in that moment wasn’t just vision — it was humanity. In the raw days that followed, when the cameras stopped rolling and much of the world went back about its business — Pataki continued to show up. Not just as governor, but as a fellow New Yorker. He hugged firefighters. He sat quietly with the families. He listened. He bore witness.

What he saw, what he experienced, would take a toll on any person. But he carried it with dignity — absorbing the pain of others while rarely showing his own.

Rebuilding wasn’t easy. Building anything of consequence in New York is tough. But rebuilding the world’s financial center — on a mass gravesite, above a subterranean maze of slurry walls, rail tunnels, communications conduits and water lines — was almost unimaginable.

More than 13 million square feet of commercial real estate were reduced to rubble in a single morning — along with thousands of lives, a skyline and a sense of invincibility.

Some wanted to rebuild the Twin Towers exactly as they were. Some didn’t want to rebuild at all. Some believed a memorial was unnecessary. Others thought the entire site should become sacred ground — like Arlington National Cemetery. Pataki navigated the media barbs, the greedy developers and a public impatient for progress. He met local resistance, bureaucratic infighting and national scrutiny with the same steadiness he had shown in those first anguished hours.

At the end of the day, it is his vision that stands at Ground Zero.

Pataki was renowned for his disciplined presence and unflappable bearing, but in those moments, it was his empathy that made the difference. He didn’t see his job as winning a news cycle or delivering a soundbite. He saw it as protecting something sacred: the dignity of a city that had lost so much, and the spirit of the nation that had endured it.

In those days after 9/11, George Pataki reminded us that true leadership is defined not by the volume of your voice, but by the depth of your care. A quiet sentinel of decency and resolve, while others searched for the spotlight, he made sure the lights came back on.

And behind the stoic calm he carried through that crisis was a man whose intellect and self-effacing humor had long earned the trust — and deep affection — of his staff, supporters and those who knew him best.

As we celebrate Gov. Pataki’s 80th birthday, it’s clear that his contributions — and his example of steady, selfless public service — continue to resonate to this day.

Eighty is a milestone — but for Pataki it is just another marker of a life well lived. The former governor still has much to say and much to contribute. From New York to his advocacy for Ukraine, he remains active in public life — and, as ever, committed to the state and country he has long served.

(Dave Catalfamo, who served as communications director for former Gov. George Pataki, is a small business owner, author of “Dynasty on the Hudson” and founder of Saratoga Tracksider.)