Kathy Hochul and Bruce Blakeman remain locked in competitive race for New York governor
A Democratic governor has occupied New York's Executive Mansion in Albany for nearly two decades. Republican Bruce Blakeman is looking to change that, but polls suggest he still has an uphill climb in his quest to unseat incumbent Kathy Hochul.
Blakeman has taken the fight to Hochul ever since he emerged as the GOP's candidate after his primary challenger, upstate Rep. Elise Stefanik, withdrew from the race in December of last year. The Nassau County executive has since hung in against a formidable opponent in a state that has traditionally backed her party at the highest levels of government.
Despite that, Blakeman, 71, has seemingly plateaued at the polls, as he has trailed mostly by double digits in the most recent samplings.
The two made a final push to voters Monday, and will be out again Tuesday.
Hochul spent Monday in New York City, shaking hands, taking selfies and even bowling a strike at a campaign rally in Brooklyn.
Blakeman was just as busy, campaigning on Long Island and upstate before wrapping up his night at Madison Square Garden.
Nearly two million New Yorkers already cast their ballots, including more than 690,000 in New York City. Both campaigns are watching to see whether the strong early turnout continues through Election Day.
Blakeman focuses on affordability, immigration on campaign trail
Sensing a potential problem at the ballot box on Nov. 3, Blakeman has ratcheted up his attacks on Hochul over New York's affordability issues, including high taxes and utility rates, immigration, and the governor's working relationship with democratic socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
When the candidates met on Oct. 13 in their one and only debate, Blakeman pointed to neighboring Pennsylvania, claiming its energy policies have helped keep costs lower for residents.
"On the Pennsylvania side of the border, people are driving around in brand-new Cadillac Escalades," Blakeman said. "And on the New York side of the border, they're driving around 25-year-old rusted-out pickup trucks because of your policies."
He then doubled down on comparisons to Pennsylvania a week later.
"We're sitting on one of the largest natural gas reserves in the world here in New York state. Yet, Kathy Hochul won't let us extract that natural gas," Blakeman said. "In Pennsylvania, with a Democrat governor, Josh Shapiro, their utility bills are half ours because he allows for the extraction of natural gas."
Blakeman said Hochul's alliance with Mamdani will lead to her undoing.
"Look, if you want to campaign with him, that's fine. But I will tell you right now, I think Zohran Mamdani is an antisemite. I believe he's anti-Christian, and I don't think he has American values," Blakeman said.
A staunch supporter of law enforcement, Blakeman introduced a plan to deputize citizens with gun licenses to augment local police in times of emergency. He has often said Nassau County is the safest county in America.
Hochul touts accomplishments, tries to tie Blakeman to Trump
Hochul, 68, the only woman to ever hold the highest elected office in New York, is seeking her second full term since taking over for scandal-plagued former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2021. She has mostly used the campaign trail to tout her record, which includes gun safety legislation and investments in subway safety, mental health care, childcare, housing, and clean energy initiatives.
When Hochul has attacked Blakeman, she has attempted to tie him to President Trump, whose approval ratings are currently far below what they were earlier in his second term, setting the stage for what could be a rough midterm election for Republicans nationally.
"He says that he's going to bring Trump-style leadership to Albany," Hochul said during the debate. "You support every single thing that Donald Trump does."
Hochul also addressed affordability, saying high costs have more to do with Mr. Trump's policies than anything she has enacted in New York.
"If you bought groceries lately, my God, the people are suffering. And that didn't have to be the case. Why are we at war with the rest of the world?" she said.
In a rare direct attack on Blakeman on Oct. 20, Hochul cranked up the rhetoric on the conflict in the Middle East.
"You know what would be a lot better for driving down energy costs in the state of New York? Stopping the war with Iran. I have yet to hear Bruce Blakeman give any blame to the Trump administration on why our costs have gone [up]," Hochul said. "We want to know what the main cost of energy is. It is the war with Iran. Everything is more expensive. The cost of gas, the cost of diesel that powers many of our plants," Hochul said.
Hochul has also spearheaded economic relief for New Yorkers, introducing and distributing specific programs, including energy rebates and inflation refunds.
