WESTBURY, New York — With New York GOP gubernatorial nominee Lee Zeldin seeing a late surge in the polls, top Republicans in the House are rallying behind him ahead of Election Day.
The Long Island congressman is mounting a fierce challenge, with surveys showing him only trailing Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) by 6 points, on average, in a state that has long been seen as a Democratic stronghold.
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA), along with a group of GOP lawmakers and Wyoming GOP candidate Harriet Hageman, joined Zeldin onstage at an event in Franklin Square on Wednesday, where he applauded the New York Republican’s work in the House.
“We love serving with Lee Zeldin in Congress, but right now, New York needs Lee Zeldin more than we do,” he told an enthusiastic crowd.
Scalise, who was campaigning for New York GOP congressional candidates George Santos and Anthony D’Esposito as well on Wednesday, said he believes Zeldin’s focus on addressing crime in the state has been a key factor in the race tightening, adding he believes Zeldin has messaged his plans in a way that resonates with swing voters.
“The reason that Lee Zeldin has so much excitement behind his campaign and so much momentum is because he was the right candidate with the right message, and he has been talking constantly about the crime problem in New York and what he would do to confront it, even when you didn’t have as wide-scale of a recognition of the problem. And Hochul is still in denial,” he told the Washington Examiner in an interview.
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“She actually mocked his focus on crime at the last debate, which shows you how out of touch she is, but the voters in New York, including a lot of Democrats, are voting on this as their No. 1 issue, and Lee is the only one with a plan who’s focused on addressing it, and that’s why he’s in a position to win,” he continued.
Scalise said he believes having former Police Capt. Alison Esposito on the ticket to be the next lieutenant governor will drive voters to the polls. The minority whip likened Zeldin’s campaign to Republican Glenn Youngkin’s in 2021, asserting that an upset like the Virginia governor’s is not out of the realm of possibility.
“I’ve been around a lot of different parts of the state of New York these last few weeks, including in the city, and there’s tremendous enthusiasm behind Lee Zeldin because he’s fighting for the people that have been left behind. And it’s a great message. And you saw this play out in Virginia, you’ve seen it play out in other places — if you actually care about the things that people care about and show them a plan that you’re going to do something about it, they will rally behind you, and they’ll show up in numbers people haven’t seen in a long time,” he added.
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“It’s going to shock a lot of people around the country, but I don’t think it’s going to shock people in New York when Lee wins,” Scalise added.
House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) also stumped for Zeldin this week, appearing with local Republican officials at a rally attended by thousands just outside Albany, where they were greeted by an enthusiastic crowd.
As the polls have tightened in the gubernatorial race, with Hochul’s lead shrinking from 12 points in early October, President Joe Biden is planning a visit to Yonkers to rally alongside Hochul and New York state Democrats on Sunday in an effort to get out the vote.
