‘They Will Try To Steal The Election’: Blakeman, Hochul Trade Barbs Over Election Security

LONG ISLAND, NY — With three months to go before voters head to the ballot boxes, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman and New York Governor Kathy Hochul are already trading verbal blows about the results of that election.

In an interview on Fox Business Wednesday morning, Blakeman said his campaign would have "thousands of volunteers to make sure there are no dirty tricks" on election day, before alleging that Hochul's democratic party would attempt to "steal" the election.

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"They will try to steal the election…just like they tried to eliminate my ability to get matching funds…yes, they will try everything," Blakeman said. "We're going to make sure we have a fair election, and I'm going to win this election."

Blakeman's campaign had its access to matching funds stripped in March after campaign finance officials said he had failed to properly file paperwork with the state. The county executive sued to restore his campaign's access to funding, ultimately winning back the match funds in May.

In a statement Wednesday, Hochul campaign spokesperson Ryan Radulovacki said the county executive was taking a page out of President Donald Trump's playbook and "embracing Trump's election denial lies."

"When Bruce Blakeman says he's running for governor to bring 'Trump-style leadership to Albany,' this is what he means – first campaigning with January 6th architects, now embracing Trump's election denial lies," Radulovacki said. "New Yorkers see this for what it is: putting MAGA first no matter the cost."

Later on Wednesday, City & State NY's Rebecca C. Lewis said on X that she had asked Blakeman if he would accept the results of the election come November.

"He wouldn't say yes without a caveat," Lewis wrote. "'If the results of the election are fair and they reflect what actually people voted for, yes,' he said."

Blakeman closed the interview with Fox saying that he expected Trump to be in New York to campaign with him soon. The most recent Siena polls, which came out in late June, have Hochul ahead of Blakeman 52 percent to 32 percent.

To watch the full Fox interview with Blakeman, click here.