Trump bet that his presence could turn out conservative Republicans in the gubernatorial race. But even some in the MAGA base aren’t confident about the odds.
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — President Donald Trump took a break from his midterm blitz of campaign rallies in Republican-leaning states to visit Upstate New York to stump for the GOP nominee for governor, Bruce Blakeman, and deliver a speech in which he said Americans were experiencing a “golden age” under his tenure.
Blakeman, the Nassau county executive and an old friend from the president’s days as a real estate developer, faces an uphill battle to unseat Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and become the first Republican elected as New York’s governor since 2004. According to a recent Marist Poll, the incumbent holds an 11-point lead among registered voters.
However, onstage at the Oncenter in central Syracuse, the president waved away the poll numbers, telling supporters to vote as if he were on the ballot.
“Here in New York, the Democrat communist politicians are a warning to the entire nation,” Trump said, criticizing Hochul over the state’s income tax and praising Blakeman’s record on crime as Nassau county executive.
Trump also criticized Norway for not awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize, calling it an “indelible stain” on the Nordic nation. He played for the crowd footage of CNN covering his favorability among Republicans.
“We’re in a golden age of our country,” Trump said. “But you have to get out to keep it and vote Republican.”
Some Republicans have said they worry that Trump’s visit could harm, rather than help, Blakeman’s campaign and question why, in an election year in which so many red-state Republicans are facing competitive races, Trump has decided to visit the Democratic stronghold.
“The simple truth is that if this race is about Trump, Blakeman not only loses, he gets his ass kicked,” Bob Lonsberry, a conservative radio host and New Yorker, wrote on X ahead of Trump’s visit.
The online post, which begged Trump to “stay away,” suggested that “presidential ego” was the reason for the visit.
In Syracuse, Trump was met outside the venue by more than a thousand protesters, cordoned by law enforcement armed with riot shields and batons.
Inside, Trump spoke for 90 minutes to an enthusiastic, standing-room-only crowd, which was dotted with people dressed in MAGA merchandise and T-shirts with illustrations of Hochul over the phrase “Ditch the Witch.”
“Wow, what an evening,” Trump said. “I think I’m going to stay here tonight. Maybe for the weekend. Anybody have a nice house I could stay with?”
Early in Trump’s speech, a protester was removed. He dismissed her and the protesters outside as “paid political actors.”
Matt Gordon, a 42-year-old independent and anti-Trump protester, described the event as little more than an “ego boost.”
“This is a way to keep his name in everybody’s face,” Gordon said of the president.
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Trump supporter Jordan Shae, 28, on the other hand, said he hoped the president’s visit would galvanize turnout in Upstate New York.
“It just shows what type of person Trump is: No matter how far behind someone is in the polls, he wants to give them a chance,” said Shae, who wore a pair of official Trump-branded golden sneakers that cost him $200.
But Shae said he worried that New York was too liberal for Blakeman to prevail.
“I wish they would make New York City its own thing. Make it a district, like Washington, D.C.,” Shae said.
The unpopularity of the war with Iran, the surge in gasoline prices and the trade war with Canada have hurt Trump’s standing in Upstate New York. Hochul has sought to use this to her advantage, tying Blakeman to Trump’s economic policies and labeling him “Trump’s puppet.”
Kyle Woods, a Blakeman supporter and recent college graduate, said he was concerned that Trump’s presence could drive away moderate voters.
“As much as I like the president, you need to be viewed as a moderate to win New York,” said Woods, 22.
“If I had to guess, Blakeman probably doesn’t want the president here to campaign for him,” Woods said.
Still, even as some Republican candidates seek to distance themselves from Trump, Blakeman has welcomed his support.
“People are happier under Donald Trump, except one state,” said Blakeman, who blamed Hochul for the affordability crisis in New York.
He also blamed the governor’s approach to immigration and crime for the recent shooting of 28-year-old Oscar Belgal by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, and attacked her endorsement of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whom he called a communist.
Trump supporter Mary Martin, 27, brought her sister, a Democrat, to the rally, saying they were united by their dislike of Hochul.
Martin said she was unsure whether the president’s campaigning in New York would help Blakeman but added, “If Trump thinks it’s important to be in New York, then I trust his judgment.”
Luke Tausch, 21, who wore a white and pink shirt that read “Daddy’s Home” over an image of Trump and the White House, felt optimistic that the president’s visit would have its intended effect.
Tausch dismissed the suggestion that Trump’s time on the campaign trail might have been better spent galvanizing the base in a red state.
“If you think anywhere is unsavable, then the Democrats will take over everywhere,” he said.
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