Can Blakeman pull off the magic Trump sees in him?

Daily Point

GOP gubernatorial candidate makes his case on Fox

President Donald Trump says Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has the "magic" to beat Gov. Kathy Hochul in November, and Blakeman is confident he will be governor on Jan. 1.

But first, it seems, they have to convince Fox News.

Tuesday morning Trump posted to his social media account, "Bruce Blakeman, the highly respected and very popular Nassau County Executive, who is running for Governor, is surging in the New York State Polls. He is one of the best politicians in the U.S. Watch him work his magic!!! President DJT"

It's no secret that political support aside, Trump just likes Blakeman. At a rally in the Bronx in 2024, Trump said Blakeman has the "it" factor. "If I'm doing a movie of a politician, this is the guy I have playing (one)."

But Blakeman's star power may have needed a recharge Tuesday morning after his ho-hum appearance on Fox Business, which seems likely the reason Trump picked up his phone to post high praise of the Nassau executive.

About half an hour before Trump's Truth Social post, Blakeman was on "Mornings with Maria" in what should have been a pep rally but at times sounded oddly like a high school kid getting coached up before a big game.

Blakeman, who got plenty of soft-toss questions, kind of got grilled by Maria Bartiromo a few times. After introducing Blakeman, Bartiromo cut to the chase: "I'm not seeing a lot of you. Where have you been, Bruce? It looks like Kathy Hochul is gonna beat you. What are you gonna do about it?"

Later, Bartiromo said, "We wanna know specifically how are you gonna get New Yorkers out to actually vote for you, Bruce? Make the case."

Blakeman's responses were sharp when he played his best-of hits, railing against high taxes, congestion pricing and the green energy "scam." And he was sure-footed in repeating his call to cut New Yorkers' energy bills in half. But he sounded staccato whenever Bartiromo pressed for quicker, hard-hitting New York-style quips.

At one point, Bartiromo encouraged commentator Kenny Polcari to "jump in here," but even Polcari gave Blakeman backhanded praise, saying he would "love to see" Blakeman in the governor's mansion but "... I need to start seeing you more on social media ... you have to really pound yourself, you know, you gotta get your message out there using social media."

"Can you do it?" Bartiromo interjected.

Blakeman's eventual response? "Yeah, of course, we have a tremendous social media presence right now. We're on Instagram, TikTok. We're on Facebook. We send out text messages every day, emails. We have actually bought television. So we're doing all the things. You know, you don't cut a lead in half by doing nothing. ... We are on a big roll. We have the momentum. And as I said, we're six months ahead of where Lee Zeldin was and he lost a very close race to Kathy Hochul. We're not gonna lose. We're gonna win."

On Monday, as it happened, Bartiromo interviewed Rep. Elise Stefanik about her new book criticizing top college campuses. Bartiromo asked why Stefanik called off her campaign for governor (which happened after Trump endorsed Blakeman). Stefanik said she “made the best decision professionally but also personally.”

Blakeman insisted his "high profile campaign" is raising money and has cut Hochul's lead to single digits. Zeldin, a former congressman from Shirley and current EPA administrator rumored to be a possible attorney general candidate, lost to Hochul in 2022 by only 6 points.

But hours later, Hochul's aggressive social media gave a lesson on how it works by circulating a video on X titled "How Bruce Blakeman's campaign is going" of Blakeman fumbling with a podium and microphones at an outdoor event as wind ruffled his papers. Not exactly the look of a well-oiled campaign machine. It looked like Blakeman could have used a little magic. 

Hochul's campaign, in a statement to The Point, avoided references to Blakeman's Trump-endorsed sorcerer's abilities. "New Yorkers know that Blakeman puts his loyalty to Trump ahead of them at every turn ..."

In a statement to The Point, Blakeman's campaign also steered clear of wizardry puns. "From the leader of the free world to the everyday New Yorker, all are recognizing Bruce Blakeman's surging poll numbers that are fueled by people fed up with Kathy Hochul's tax hikes and soaring utility bills."

Was the TV appearance and presidential social media post a coordinated one-two combo by Blakeman's campaign and the White House to gin up fundraising for a candidate who hasn't had a ubiquitous presence early in the campaign? Or was it a spur-of-the-moment response to help a friend by Trump who surely was watching his fave network and anchorwoman? The only thing that matters is if Blakeman can cast a spell and "work his magic!!!" to pull off an uphill upset of an incumbent in a Democratic state.

— Mark Nolan mark.nolan@newsday.com

Pencil Point

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Final Point

After GOP lands with Driscoll for CD4, Dems smell victory

Just before Tuesday's end-of-day deadline, the Nassau GOP finally came up with a candidate to challenge Democratic incumbent Laura Gillen in CD4, a House seat once considered an excellent opportunity for a Republican pickup as the party seeks to maintain its majority.

Democrats are now saying the race is over before it begins.

Jeanine Driscoll, the receiver of taxes for Hempstead Town, is the party's choice after Anthony D'Esposito, who represented the district from 2022 to 2024, chose to remain inspector general at the U.S. Department of Labor rather than take on a tough fight to get his seat back. D'Esposito talked like he might enter the race, but sources said he is more interested in seeing through a major investigation of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, with an eye to getting the Cabinet secretary job for himself.

"It's a tough year to get good GOP candidates; none want to go on a suicide mission," said Jay Jacobs, Nassau County Democratic Party chair, who added the little-known Driscoll appeared to be the GOP's fourth choice. "If the receiver of taxes is the person you go to shore up your base, you are in big trouble," said Jacobs. He said Gillen has had the advantage of focusing on the campaign, along with close to $3 million in the bank. On Monday, Gillen brought Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, who is likely to become House speaker if the Democrats take control, to Elmont to speak to leaders of the Haitian American community.

Valley Stream Mayor John DeGrace was the placeholder on the party's CD4 petitions and State Sen. Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, who is seeking reelection, was under consideration, but there was a concern the GOP might not hold onto the seat.

"I sympathize," said Jacobs, noting that 2026 is the first time off-year local elections, such as those for town offices, are being moved to even years when congressional and presidential contests are held. Any candidate choosing to make a run for state or federal office would have to give up the position they already hold.

Republicans disagree with the assessment that the odds now favor CD4 staying blue. "Gillen's record as a freshman is dismal and NY-04 remains very much a competitive race," said Kristen Cianci, a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee.

Nassau GOP chair Joe Cairo didn't address the competitiveness of the race, choosing to trash Gillen's two years in Congress as well as her two-year tenure as Hempstead Town supervisor. "Jeanine is the clear choice to fight for lower taxes and greater affordability for Nassau County families," said his statement.

— Rita Ciolli rita.ciolli@newsday.com

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