Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman said Thursday that he welcomed news of Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul’s planned campaign appearances with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, arguing the partnership could strengthen his bid for governor.
“The more Kathy Hochul and Zohran Mamdani campaign together, the more likely it is that I will have not only a victory but a very, very astounding victory,” Blakeman said after accepting the endorsement of former Bronx Democratic Councilman and Assemblyman Steve Kaufman outside the Crosstown Diner.
Hochul, who is seeking a second four-year term, is expected to campaign alongside the democratic socialist mayor Friday, shortly before early voting begins ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, said Mamdani’s attacks could drive Democrats and independent voters toward his campaign.
“The more he attacks me, the more Democrats who come over to support me. The more independent voters who come over to support me,” Blakeman said. “I just hope Zohran Mamdani is real active for the next 11 days with Kathy Hochul, campaigning together all around the state. I think it’s a big boost to my campaign.”
“Thank you to both of them for appearing together. Keep doing it!” Blakeman added, raising his fist for emphasis.
Political strategists say Mamdani could help drive turnout for Hochul in heavily Democratic New York City, where recent surveys show the mayor enjoys strong popularity. A robust vote in the city will be crucial to Hochul’s re-election prospects.
The Hochul campaign responded by highlighting a recent assessment from a Republican strategist.
“Mamdani is one of the most popular politicians on planet Earth right now,” Chapin Fay, a strategist for the pro-Blakeman Strong and Safe New York Super PAC, told Politico after the mayor met with President Trump at Gracie Mansion last month.
Trump’s increasingly friendly relationship with Mamdani has made it more difficult for Republicans to portray the left-wing mayor as a straightforward political villain.
Mamdani’s campaign, meanwhile, pointed to a Quinnipiac University poll showing Hochul ahead of Blakeman by 14 percentage points, 55% to 41%.
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Blakeman dismissed the survey as “another phony poll,” arguing that it understated his support. Republican internal polling, he said, shows Hochul’s advantage is only four points.
Kaufman, who called himself a moderate, said he was backing Blakeman because he believes the Democratic Party has moved too far to the left.
“If Bruce does not get elected, the acceleration of the decline and fall of New York City and New York state will become like a downward slide,” Kaufman said. “The Democratic Party, I’m sad to say, has been a house of horrors. A house of hatred.”
“There’s no room for moderate people and moderation within its ranks,” he added. “This is something we all have to repudiate, whether you’re Republican, conservative or Democrat. We have to yank our civilization back to the middle.”
“The Democratic Party has become the Socialist Communist Party of America, and it breaks my heart to see that,” Kaufman said.
Kaufman also criticized Hochul’s opposition to natural-gas drilling as utility costs continue to climb across New York.
“They had billions upon billions of dollars for illegal aliens but not for the average person living here,” he said.
Billy Tsibidis, the 47-year-old owner of the Crosstown Diner, said his restaurant’s monthly electric bill has reached $15,000.
“We have to sell well over 1,000 burgers just to pay our utility bill,” Tsibidis said. “Kathy Hochul and the state, man, they are killing us here in New York. It’s crazy!”
“They’re anti-business! It’s almost like they’re trying to drive all the little businesses out of the state. I don’t get it,” Tsibidis said.
Kaufman also referenced Hochul’s gaffe from two years ago when she said black kids from the Bronx don’t know what computers are.
“This is your governor! She’s an idiot!” he said.
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