Rep. Zeldin says he will seek GOP gubernatorial nomination in NY

WASHINGTON — Long Island Rep. Lee Zeldin said Thursday he will run for governor of New York, launching his bid for the Republican nomination with an attack on Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo for diminishing the state and a promise to bring it "back from the brink."

Zeldin, 41, a four-term congressman from Shirley, announced his decision on Fox News Thursday morning after spending the past five weeks testing the waters by talking with county Republican chairs and leaders across the state.

"After talking to New Yorkers who feel like this is a last stand, the last great opportunity to save New York, and the fact that to save our state, Andrew Cuomo has got to go, I'm announcing here this morning on your show that I'm running for governor of New York in 2022," Zeldin said. "I am all in."

In a statement, Zeldin said, "I will bring the kind of relentless, fighting spirit toward helping to save our state that Andrew Cuomo only reserves for multimillion-dollar self-congratulatory book deals, cover-ups, abuse and self-dealing."

Though he gained national attention as a staunch defender of former President Donald Trump over the past four years and visited the former president at his Mar-a-Lago home and resort last month, Zeldin did not mention Trump in his announcement.

Instead, Zeldin trained a blistering attack on Cuomo, whose expected run for a fourth term has become clouded by accusations of sexual harassment being investigated by independent prosecutors, a federal probe of his handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes, and questions about his book deal.

"The New York that was once a magnet for the world’s best and brightest is now forcing its own to leave under the crushing weight of skyrocketing taxes, lost jobs, suffocating regulations and rising crime resulting from dangerously liberal policies," Zeldin said.

New York State Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs challenged Zeldin to outline his program for New York State and said Zeldin is not moderate enough to win a statewide election.

"Lee Zeldin is a unrepentant Trump supporter, a proponent of the big lie that Joe Biden was not fairly elected and that the election was stolen," Jacobs said. "And he has a rich record of opposing programs that would benefit New Yorkers while favoring programst and policies that are clearly out of touch with the mainstream of New York voters."

New York State Republican Committee Chairman Nick Langworthy, who welcomed Zeldin's announcement, dismissed Trump as an issue in the governor's race. "It's a sad, tired playbook that they think is going to paper over all of the ridiculous things that Democrats have done to our state," he said.

Zeldin is one of the first Republicans to formally announce a run for governor, but others also have expressed an interest in being the GOP gubernatorial candidate, Langworthy said.

"Congressman Zeldin's record of achievement in the Congress and the respect and stature he brings to the race is huge," Langworthy said.

He said others exploring a run include the last two GOP gubernatorial candidates, Rob Astorino and Marcus Molinaro, and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s son Andrew. Lewis County Sheriff Michael P. Carpinelli announced his candidacy in December.

A potentially formidable competitor to Zeldin for the nomination, Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning), removed himself on March 21 from the race, saying he would not run for governor or Congress after being accused of sexual misconduct by a lobbyist.

Zeldin's announcement will set off a scramble among both parties to fill his congressional seat in Suffolk County, Jacobs said, adding that with both state and federal primaries on the same day next year, he cannot run for both positions.

Asked if Zeldin will try to run for both posts, his spokeswoman Katie Vincentz said, "He's all in on running for governor."

Zeldin jumps into the race with the backing of Suffolk County Republican Chairman Jesse Garcia and Nassau County Republican Chairman Joseph G. Cairo, Jr., who on Wednesday declared their intention to endorse Zeldin as Long Island’s favorite son if he were to run.

Republican county chairmen will be meeting on April 19 in Albany in person for the first time in 15 months to discuss how to line up a ticket for next year and to meet with hopefuls willing to challenge Cuomo and Sen. Chuck Schumer and to run for other offices, Langworthy said.

"We're going to lay out our screening process as we meet to discuss things internally. They're going to hear from the candidates and I presume that there may very well be endorsements rolling out after the meeting," he said.

Zeldin also has the backing of New York State Conservative Party Chairman Jerry Kassar, who has encouraged him to run. And Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Trump, heaped praise on Zeldin in a Fox News story Monday that suggested many Trump aides support him.

"I can think of no other candidate who doesn’t have the last name of Trump that MAGA supporters are more excited about potentially running for governor in 2022 than Lee Zeldin," Miller told Fox News.

Zeldin must overcome New York's history of being a reliably blue state. No Republican has won a statewide race since 2002, and Democrat Joe Biden won New York with 61% of the vote compared with 38% for Trump in the 2020 presidential election.