Despite widespread vaccination, Democratic governors are still whipping up panic about COVID-19 and the new, less fatal omicron variant. But it appears that even they know their power trips are coming to an end.

New York and California are both reimposing mask mandates, but neither seems too interested in enforcing them. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said that the state will not enforce its mandate and will leave it to counties. California state officials were not clear about whether the state would enforce its mandate.

Both mandates are unnecessary — lingering symptoms of power-hungry Democratic governors refusing to live and let live. Around 76% of California adults are fully vaccinated, and New York is up to 82%. Both governors are panicking over cases (or, more likely, trying to show panicky liberals that they are still treating the virus seriously) by dragging residents backward.

But most people have lost the stomach for this stuff. Life has gone on as normal for most people across the country, with a few exceptions (such as the disgraceful restrictions being imposed on schoolchildren). California and New York hope to scare businesses into bringing back their mandates, but they don’t appear willing to enforce any. They will instead let counties decide whether they want to make it a real mandate.

The COVID emergency is over, as Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has noted. There are specific areas that may have problems with overcrowded hospitals, but statewide mask mandates lost whatever value they may have had when vaccines became readily available. Hochul and California Gov. Gavin Newsom are both starting to recognize this, and residents should remind them that two years of mandates are enough.