Democratic Party decline prompted a celebrity longtime supporter to jump ship in favor of a Trump-backed gubernatorial alternative in her deep blue home state.
“You are what we need more than anything.”
Like an anchor dragging the rest of the Empire State into the Atlantic, the five boroughs in the southeast of New York have long outweighed the outcome of statewide elections. While New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s (D) policies already found many decrying the decline of Gotham, it was incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) control of Albany that found award-winning actress Debra Messing publicly endorsing Republican gubernatorial nominee Bruce Blakeman.
“Oh gosh, I am so grateful that you are running,” the native New Yorker said in a video alongside the county executive for Nassau County posted to his Instagram. “You are what we need more than anything.”
View this post on Instagram
“The decline in this city over the last four years has been so exponential and devastating economically, socially — on every level — and obviously we’ve lost so much business here. People are leaving the city,” the actress continued. “I was born here. This is the city I love, and it’s not the city that I love anymore. And I believe with all my heart that you are the answer.”
“You are the affordable candidate, and I think, more than anything, people are just really struggling, and they need their utilities to be lower, and they don’t want to have to pay to have congestion and the driving,” added Messing in a reference to the congestion pricing scheme that tolled drivers in the Big Apple to travel south of 60th Street in Manhattan.
While some have warned that socialist policies could attract young conservative voters who continue to see failure from the establishment GOP to act on campaign promises, it appears the Marxist march to the left for Democrats was just as likely to overcome Trump Derangement Syndrome for detractors like Messing, who leveled allegations that President Donald Trump would strip away women’s rights when he was first running for office.
“It’s just too expensive to live in New York City, and I love the fact that that is the top of your mind,” she said as Blakeman went on to express, “I want you to love New York again.”
He also shared her support on X, writing, “Debra Messing is backing me over Kathy Hochul. Party loyalty doesn’t pay the utility bill or keep you safe. Thank you, Debra. I’ll cut taxes, lower bills, and make New York safe and affordable. Had enough of Hochul? Join us.”
Debra Messing is backing me over Kathy Hochul.
Party loyalty doesn’t pay the utility bill or keep you safe.
Thank you, Debra. I’ll cut taxes, lower bills, and make New York safe and affordable.
Had enough of Hochul? Join us.
— Bruce Blakeman (@NassauExec) October 5, 2026
Earlier this year, Messing, who was not supportive of Islamunist Mamdani’s mayoral race, sounded off on Hizzoner’s poor response to Winter Storm Fern, detailing online, “The streets are a disaster. It hasn’t snowed in 5 days and the streets still haven’t been cleared … I’ve lived here for 15 years (this go around) and this has never happened. The plows have always worked around the clock to get the city back to working. I wonder what happened? … Hang in there New Yorkers.”
Hochul campaign spokesman Ryan Radulovacki responded to the endorsement, telling the New York Post, “We’re proud that New Yorkers from across all 62 counties, with an average online donation of $22.38, are standing with Governor Hochul in her fight to bring down the cost of housing, childcare, car insurance and more, and stop her ‘MAGA all the way’ opponent from letting Donald Trump attack New York, jack up prices, and threaten public safety.”
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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