ALBANY – Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman announced on Tuesday that he will run for governor against Democrat incumbent Kathy Hochul.
By entering the race, Blakeman, 70, set up a primary with another ally of President Donald Trump, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, who announced her bid for governor last month. Hochul faces her own primary challenge from Lt. Gov Antonio Delgado, viewed as an underdog.
“New Yorkers are being hit from every angle, rising prices, rising crime, and Albany mandates that make life harder, not easier,” Blakeman said. “I’m running for Governor to put the people of our state first. It’s time for leadership that fixes problems, protects families, and makes New York affordable and safe again.”
Blakeman won his bid for a second term as Nassau County Executive by a wide margin in November. He previously served on the Hempstead Town Council and later held an appointed position as commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Trump has yet to indicate if he supports Blakeman or Stefanik. However, in a statement, Bernadette Breslin, a spokesperson for Stefanik’s campaign, said Stefanik is a stronger candidate than Blakeman and that “it is unfortunate that he is putting his ego first to help prop up Kathy Hochul.”
Blakeman and Stefanik will likely now try to present themselves as candidates capable of appealing to moderate Democrats as well as Republicans. Both candidates recently visited Orange County: Stefanik was welcomed by the County’s top Republicans, including County Executive Steve Neuhaus, in Montgomery on Nov. 24.
About a week earlier, Neuhaus hosted Blakeman at a veterans event in Montgomery, as he mulled a run for Governor. Republicans haven’t won the Governor’s race in the state since 2002, when George Pataki was elected for a third term.
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