Bruce Blakeman’s Campaign Hits Turbulence From The Right

ALBANY, New York — The Empire State’s conservative base is up in arms with Republican Bruce Blakeman’s campaign for governor, troubled by his self-described “pro-choice” abortion stance and skeptical of his record on guns — undermining his glidepath to the GOP nomination.

Some right-leaning activists, upset by Rep. Elise Stefanik’s decision to bow out of the race last month, are weighing whether to throw their support behind protest candidates. The state’s affiliate of the National Rifle Association is investigating Blakeman’s position on access to firearms. And anti-abortion advocates are circulating a petition urging the state Republican Party to deny the President Donald Trump-backed Blakeman the nomination.

These right-flank doubters and critics are making an already uphill battle against Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul a near impossibility. Blakeman can’t afford to lose any votes in a state where Republicans are outnumbered 2-to-1.

“He’s never been someone we could support,” said conservative activist Carl Gottstein, who plans to run for governor on an independent ballot line. “We need a champion and we don’t have one.”

In an interview, Blakeman said the criticism has not alarmed him.

“I could go down the line of things that define me as someone who is a principled person with American values,” he said. “So I am not at all concerned that there are a very few groups of people that may not think I am conservative enough for them.”

The GOP is eager to mount an aggressive campaign against Hochul this year, with some wagering Blakeman will be a strong top of the ticket to aid down-ballot Republicans in crucial House races. New York is home to a handful of swing districts that may determine control of the chamber — and the final two years of Trump’s term.

Blakeman’s trouble underscores the difficulty for Republicans in this deep blue state, where the party has been shut out of the governor’s office for 20 years. GOP candidates who have opposed abortion and run campaigns that cater to conservatives have all lost against well-funded, mostly middle-of-the-road Democrats like Hochul and ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Republicans with more liberal stances on those issues have not been able to win GOP primaries — creating a catch-22 for a party desperate to win, but struggling to build a bigger tent.

On paper, there’s little doubt Blakeman has been a stalwart Republican during the MAGA era.

He has taken a hard line on protesters wearing masks, trans athletes and migrants. And he has a strong relationship with The New York Post, the influential conservative tabloid he made the “official” newspaper of Nassau County. This week, Blakeman was endorsed by the chair of the state Conservative Party — a nod that will be helpful in short circuiting a prospective rival’s effort to challenge him from the right.

The top official in Nassau County, Blakeman has touted his ability to win over Democratic and independent voters in the purplish bellwether suburbs adjacent to New York City. An ardent Trump supporter, he won the president’s endorsement just days after Stefanik dropped out — with Trump specifically pointing to Blakeman’s Second Amendment support.

The president’s endorsement, though, has not dispelled concerns that Blakeman’s stance on abortion or guns — he supports “reasonable” restrictions on gun ownership meant to keep firearms away from criminals — is sufficiently in line with the deeply conservative base of the party.

Upstate conservative voters are especially miffed that another downstate candidate is expected to be the party’s standard bearer — further fueling the perception that the state is controlled by New York City-area interests. And Blakeman still needs to secure the backing of Stefanik’s upstate supporters who were bitterly disappointed by her abrupt decision to drop out of the race.

“Upstate is going to be a problem for Blakeman, who has already said that he's not that well-known upstate and that he's going to have to get to know people,” said Paul Vandenburgh, a conservative radio host and station owner in the Albany area. “People around here, and I can sense this on my show, are really disappointed that she's out of the race. And I don't know if, in the end, that's going to hurt potential voters for Blakeman.”

Conservative New York voters have long been troubled by a state known for stringent gun control laws and support for LGBTQ+ rights, led by Democrats that uniformly support unhindered access to abortion services. The concerns of social conservatives deepened after Hochul last month agreed to a measure that would allow terminally ill people to end their lives. The bill was sharply opposed by the Catholic Church and condemned by state GOP leaders.

But for conservative activists, Hochul’s acquiescence was another blow in a fight that has parallels to the anti-abortion movement, which has struggled to gain political prominence in New York. Democrats in 2024 successfully won the passage of an amendment that, among other guarantees, enshrined the right to an abortion in the state constitution.

Enter Blakeman, who describes himself as “pro choice” — a stance that has inflamed anti-abortion advocates. The New York State Right to Life Committee is circulating a petition urging Republicans to reject Blakeman as the party’s nominee. So far it has not gained much traction: Only 248 people have signed on as of Thursday.

“It seems to me that he believes that abortion will make the difference, and we just would like to say loudly that we agree that his position on abortion is going to make the difference, and it's not going to be a good one for the Republican Party,” Right to Life Committee spokesperson Lori Kehoe said. “We will encourage them to not vote for Bruce Blakeman. If in good conscience for them that means staying home, or voting third party or doing a write-in candidate, whatever they have to do, there needs to be a stand against Bruce Blakeman.”

Blakeman said he considers abortion “a complicated and personal issue” and is not troubled by people who disagree with him.

“Those people should sit down with me and talk about how we can spend more of our resources on adoption and foster homes and talk about things that we can agree upon rather than focus on the fact that on just one issue, we disagree,” he said.

Gun-rights advocates, meanwhile, are suspicious of Blakeman’s record on firearms access. He has advocated for “reasonable restrictions” on gun ownership, including background checks, prompting the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, an affiliate of the National Rifle Association, to conduct a review into the GOP candidate’s stance on guns.

“We’re going to be talking to people in his home county, we’re going to be looking at statements made in the past,” said the group’s executive director, Tom King, whose group had endorsed Stefanik’s gubernatorial bid.

A fight over gun policy is a potential rupture point for Blakeman — adding further doubt among rural and upstate voters that he’s grasped their concerns. Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, a Suffolk County resident who ran as the GOP nominee for governor in 2022, was able to alleviate those worries by taking a forceful gun rights stance, King said.

“Zeldin overcame a lot of that downstate bias,” King said. “If Blakeman is true to the Second Amendment issues like he claims, then we can rally the people around him. That’s why we’re doing our investigation.”

Despite these issues, there’s an abiding hunger among conservative political leaders to win in a state they fear is on a leftward tilt. Zeldin came within 6 points of unseating Hochul, the closest a Republican has come in years to winning back the office. Yet he still lost, and the GOP remains stuck in the political wilderness.

Blakeman has conducted a charm offensive to bolster his standing outside of New York City by attending a Buffalo Bills game Sunday. Last week, he spoke with Conservative Party leaders for an hour before receiving Chair Jerry Kassar’s endorsement.

Blakeman was peppered with questions over abortion and gun control during the meeting, and Kassar said the GOP candidate was able to allay some fears — while he continues to encourage people “to express their views.”

“They did express concerns. He gave answers,” Kassar said. “I felt his answers made them comfortable.”