Bruce Blakeman and New York’s slate of Republican candidates returned to the campaign trail together Monday, the second day of a statewide tour aimed at making a final appeal to voters ahead of Tuesday’s election.
Blakeman, the Nassau County executive challenging Gov. Kathy Hochul, began the day at the Embassy Diner on Long Island with Republican attorney general candidate Saritha Komatireddy and comptroller candidate Joseph Hernandez. The Bethpage restaurant is known as “America’s most patriotic diner” for its prominent red, white and blue displays.
“We are crisscrossing the state, bringing the message that help is on the way,” Blakeman told reporters outside the diner as he continued his eight-city tour of New York.
“Kathy Hochul is making people miserable — Democrats and independent voters are coming my way.”
Blakeman launched the tour Sunday and resumed it Monday morning, with only hours remaining before polls opened for Tuesday’s midterm election.
He visited Oswego, Albany and Rensselaer County during the first leg Sunday. Before the day ended, he was scheduled to travel to Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Binghamton and Manhattan before returning to Long Island for a final push to meet voters.
The three candidates moved from table to table during the Embassy Diner’s breakfast rush, speaking with customers. Komatireddy told reporters that many diners said they “want a safer NY,” a concern she said had repeatedly surfaced during her campaign.
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Each candidate is trailing the Democratic incumbent in their respective race. Blakeman was behind Hochul 40% to 54%, Komatireddy trailed Attorney General Letitia James 39% to 54%, and Hernandez was behind Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli 32% to 59%, according to Sienna University. Even so, Blakeman said Republicans could still turn New York red.
“I believe that there are enough Democrats and independent voters that will vote for me, that we will be victorious tomorrow,” Blakeman said.
“Because every day, every single day, another Democrat comes up to me and says, ‘Bruce, I’ve never voted Republican in my life, but I’m voting for you this year because my party is nuts.’”
Recent polling offered some support for Blakeman’s argument. A Convos survey found that 83% of Long Islanders had fully decided how they would vote for governor, leaving 17% potentially persuadable. Blakeman suggested that voters who remained undecided could also be found in other parts of the state.
On the first day of the tour, Blakeman said several polls showed him roughly four points behind Hochul. He described the contest as being “in the margin of error” and characterized it as a “turn-out election.”
The Republican tour unfolded as Hochul made her own final campaign appearances before Election Day, canvassing New York City with stops focused on Harlem and the Upper West Side.
Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans in New York by 6 million to 2.8 million, according to the latest active enrollment figures released this week by the state Board of Elections. More than 3.3 million active voters are also registered without a party affiliation.
The last Republican to win statewide office in New York was former Gov. George Pataki in 2002.