Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman called Manhattan a disaster that looks like a “third-world country” because of homeless camps and litter.
“The place is just a disaster,” Blakeman said Sunday on 77 WABC Radio’s “Cats Roundtable.”
“I talked to store owners in Manhattan, and they are very, very upset about … homeless people all over the place. Litter all over our streets,” Blakeman told host John Catsimatidis. “It just looks like a third-world country.”
Blakeman’s tirade comes after The Post’s expose on Friday that revealed how Mayor Zohran Mamdani has allowed homeless encampments to flourish on streets just outside the Intrepid Museum.
Blakeman, who is now serving as the elected Nassau County executive, also blasted the socialist mayor for canceling the planned hiring of New York City police officers.
“You saw the multiple shootings in New York City just over [4th of July] weekend,” Blakeman said.
“It’s like gunfights from the Wild West,” he added. “When you have a mayor that has a budget larger than the State of Florida, and he couldn’t find money to hire cops and not fill vacancies of all the people who retired over the last year — you know that his heart is not into protecting our communities.”
Blakeman accused his Democratic opponent, Gov. Kathy Hochul, of presiding over a state that has ranked last for “economic outlook” and said “common sense” Democrats are “craving for me” to defeat her.
Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal slammed Blakeman for smearing his borough with false apocalyptic statements.
“What’s he bloviating on about? This is the fun summer of Manhattan!” Hoylman-Sigal said, linking Blakeman to his longtime friend, President Trump.
“The Knicks! The World Cup! America 250! Taylor and Travis! Plus, with crime at all-time lows in Manhattan, it’s safe enough even for precious-minded suburbanites like Bruce to enjoy all that’s happening here,” the BP added.
“The real disaster is Bruce Blakeman’s campaign that’s joined at the hip with Donald Trump, the most unpopular president in modern American history.”
Hochul campaign spokesperson Ryan Radulovacki also claimed Blakeman is living in an alternate universe.
“While Governor Hochul is driving down costs for families, investing in local cops to keep our streets and subways safe, and getting 10,000 illegal guns off the street, Blakeman is ‘MAGA all the way’ and proud of it — letting violent crime hit ten-year highs and ICE run rampant, all while caving to Donald Trump at every opportunity,” Radulovack said.
Blakeman will have to overcome a pronounced enrollment disadvantage and pick up non-affiliated and crossover voters in the deeply blue Empire State if he’s to win the November elections.
Democrats outnumber Republicans 6 million to 2.8 million in the state, according to the state’s active voter enrollment logs. There are now also 3.1 million active registered voters in the state, more than the total enrollment of active GOP members.
