Zeldin wins 85% in straw poll by GOP leaders for campaign for governor

ALBANY — Rep. Lee Zeldin of Shirley won a nonbinding straw poll Monday among Republican leaders statewide to further build support for his run for governor, while his opponents promised to force a GOP primary in the 2022 race.

Zeldin won 85% of the weighted straw poll of county GOP officials, in which more populous counties controlled a larger share of the vote. Nassau and Suffolk counties supported Zeldin. Former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino won 5% of the straw poll, from Westchester officials, and 10% abstained.

The straw poll was intended to help the Republican Party coalesce around an early candidate to benefit fundraising and to reach out to Democrats and voters not enrolled in a party to help beat Democratic Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who is running for a fourth term.

The Republican Party will meet for a formal vote at its convention, likely in early 2022. At that time, any candidate who receives 25% of the vote will get on a primary ballot and any candidate who gets 50% of the vote would be the party’s designee for governor.

Zeldin continued to build on his support in the Republican meeting in the Albany suburb of Colonie. He wouldn’t comment on Andrew Guiliani’s plan to force a primary, or if a primary would aid Cuomo or another Democratic nominee by forcing Zeldin to spend more money.

Zeldin said he has so far seen "the hunger, the passion, the emotion" from voters to stop Cuomo from a fourth four-year term.

"Our opponent is weakened and flawed," Zeldin said of Cuomo. Cuomo faces investigations over claims of sexual harassment by women and his administration is being investigated by the U.S. Justice Department over the reporting of deaths of nursing home residents.

"I feel the governor would be vulnerable regardless of the scandals, because of the policies," Zeldin said. He said Cuomo has failed to revive upstate New York and has presided over a rise in crime while making laws that fail to protect communities. That includes the Democratic measure a year ago to eliminate cash bail in most criminal cases because low-income defendants have been unable to raise bail and were sent to jail for weeks or months, while wealthier defendants accused of the same crime went free.

Zeldin is in his fourth term in Congress and is a former state senator. He has received endorsements from enough county Republican leaders to reach the nomination, but those endorsements aren’t binding and could change before or during the convention,

Astorino called the straw poll meaningless. "The 3 million Republicans throughout New York will be deciding who the strongest candidate is in next June’s primary, not a few dozen party insiders, many of whom have told me they were pressured into making an endorsement they weren’t ready to make," he said in a statement.

Andrew Giuliani, who worked for former President Donald Trump and is son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, said he would force a primary because he believes he can attract more Democrats and voters not enrolled in any party than Zeldin would.

"I think we’re the favorite," Giuliani said before the straw poll. "I think we are able to get more crossover support."

Democrats have a better than 2:1 voter enrollment advantage over Republicans in the state. Last year, the number of voters not enrolled in any party surpassed the Republican Party enrollment.

The candidates said they will push issues including rising crime, the need for more jobs, and repeal of the recent bail law. The candidates also said they would provide more support for police, oppose the teaching of critical race theory in schools, which includes study of institutionalism racism, and end one-party rule by Democrats in state government. Outside the closed-door meeting with about 100 county officials, the candidates shared far more positions than differences.

Lewis County Sheriff Mike Carpinelli said the straw poll "has no effect on me at all. I’m all for a primary."

He said he would seek to change the current law that allows the state attorney general to investigate a case in which a police confrontation ends in death. The aim was to create a more objective process away from the relationship of local police and the county’s district attorney. Carpinelli said he wants the local district attorney to handle the case, although the state attorney general could take up a case afterward.

Construction company CEO Derrick Gibson of Queens, like Carpinelli, is running on a platform to support police, reduce crime and end the new bail law. Among his proposals is allowing New Yorkers to openly carry firearms without a permit.

"You know who carries without a permit now? Criminals," he said, defending his policy. "It’s just common sense."

By Michael Gormley

michael.gormley@newsday.com@GormleyAlbany

Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.