Bruce Blakeman Escalates Rhetoric to Secure Jewish Vote in New York Governor Race
Republican New York gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman faced sharp criticism after leaked audio revealed him warning Hasidic leaders of extreme violence if Mayor Zohran Mamdani remains in office.
In the race for New York governor against incumbent Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul, Republican candidate Bruce Blakeman has sharply escalated his rhetoric in an effort to secure the Jewish vote. According to recordings revealed by The New York Times from a closed-door meeting held on Sunday with Hasidic leaders in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, Blakeman used harsh language against New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Escalating Rhetoric and Warnings of Unrest
Blakeman, who serves as Nassau County Executive and is an observant Orthodox Jew, warned attendees against a scenario of violent riots. "If there are riots here, if they burn down your yeshivas and synagogues, burn down your homes and rape your women, do you think Zohran Mamdani will stop them?" Blakeman is heard saying in the recordings. He added that Governor Hochul "lacks the backbone to do it," comparing the situation to the 1991 Crown Heights riots, in which Jewish student Yankel Rosenbaum was murdered, noting that past events would pale in comparison to what could happen now.
"If there are riots here, if they burn down your yeshivas and synagogues, burn down your homes and rape your women, do you think Zohran Mamdani will stop them?" — Bruce Blakeman
Since entering the race, Blakeman has attempted to leverage anger among Jewish voters over Mayor Mamdani's positions regarding Israel. In his conversations, Blakeman acknowledged that he needs the support of the Hasidic community, which tends to vote as a bloc, in order to win the November election and close the gap in polls indicating a nine to nineteen percent advantage for Hochul. Blakeman did not deny the content of the recordings, responding that Mamdani refuses to condemn terrorist battle cries, despite the mayor having previously condemned the October 7 Hamas attacks on multiple occasions.
Criticism from Jewish Leaders and Officials
Blakeman's remarks drew sharp criticism from various leaders within the Jewish community as well. Rabbi Moshe Indig, a leader of the Satmar Hasidic community who supports Hochul, told The New York Times that this is a political scaremongering attempt and noted that crime is at a low. Indig praised the swift response of Mamdani and Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch after a vehicular ramming incident occurred at Chabad headquarters in Crown Heights in January, as well as the increase in the hate crimes prevention office budget to approximately twenty-six million dollars.
City Comptroller Mark Levine also condemned the remarks, calling them irresponsible rhetoric that devalues the real fight against antisemitism, while praising Hochul for passing legislation to create buffer zones for protests around religious institutions. Conversely, Rabbi David Katz, CEO of the Israel Heritage Foundation who attended the meetings, expressed support for Blakeman and argued that Mamdani's statements regarding the potential arrest of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his criticism of the IDF on the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks undermine the security of Jews in the city. Mamdani himself declined to comment on the recordings, but his associate, Brooklyn borough historian Asad Dandia, accused Blakeman of stoking hatred and Islamophobia.
