Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, Over 40 Nassau County Local Elected Officials Endorse Congressman Lee Zeldin for Governor

Watch the announcement here. Download photos here.

NEW YORK – Today, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman was joined by over 40 local elected officials from throughout Nassau County in endorsing Congressman Lee Zeldin (R, NY-1), who has been declared the presumptive nominee by both the Republican and Conservative Parties, for Governor of New York.

Full list of today’s endorsements:

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman

Nassau County Comptroller Elaine Phillips

Nassau County Clerk Maureen O’Connell

Nassau County Legislature Presiding Officer Rich Nicolello

Town of Hempstead Supervisor Don Clavin

Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor Joe Saladino

Glen Cove City Mayor Pam Panzenbeck

Town of Hempstead Receiver of Taxes Jeanine Driscoll

Town of Hempstead Clerk Kate Murray

Town of Hempstead Council Member Anthony D’Esposito

Town of Hempstead Council Member Dennis Dunne

Town of Hempstead Council Member Chris Carini

Town of Hempstead Council Member Tom Muscarella

Town of Oyster Bay Receiver of Taxes Jeff Pravato

Town of Oyster Bay Clerk Rich LaMarca

Town of Oyster Bay Council Member Steve Labriola

Town of Oyster Bay Council Member Michele Johnson

Town of Oyster Bay Council Member Lou Imbroto

Town of Oyster Bay Council Member Tom Hand

Town of Oyster Bay Council Member Laura Maier

Town of Oyster Bay Council Member Vicki Walsh

Town of North Hempstead Town Clerk Ragini Srivastava

Town of North Hempstead Council Member Dennis Walsh

Town of North Hempstead Council Member David Adhami

City of Glen Cove Council Member Joseph Capobianco

City of Glen Cove Council Member Kevin Maccarone

City of Glen Cove Council Member Jack Mancusi

of Glen Cove Council Member Barbara Peebles

New York State Assembly Member Ed Ra

New York State Assembly Member Dave McDonough

New York State Assembly Member John Mikulin

New York State Assembly Member Missy Miller

New York State Assembly Member Michael Montesano

New York State Assembly Member Michael Durso

Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford

Nassau County Legislator Bill Gaylor

Nassau County Legislator Howard Kopel

Nassau County Legislator John Giuffre

Nassau County Legislator Mazi Melesa Pilip

Nassau County Legislator James Kennedy

Nassau County Legislator Tom McKevitt

Nassau County Legislator Laura Schaefer

Nassau County Legislator John Ferretti

Nassau County Legislator Rose Walker

Nassau County Legislator Steve Rhoads

“Congressman Lee Zeldin is the person who can save our state, keep families safe, preserve our quality of life and stop Albany’s runaway taxes,” stated Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman. “I support Lee in the strongest terms because he is the right choice for Governor.  There is too much at stake to continue along the extreme and dangerous path down which Governor Hochul is taking New Yorkers, which endangers our suburban way of life.”

“I stand with Lee Zeldin for Governor because the future of our suburbs is under siege,” said Town of Hempstead Supervisor Don Clavin. “Just a few weeks ago, the Governor hatched a scheme in her budget proposal that would do away with single-family home zoning across our state. Our families have worked too hard for their slice of the suburban dream of home ownership to allow the Governor to take it away with the stroke of a pen…I’m all in with Zeldin in 2022.”

Nassau Legislator Mazi Melesa Pilip said, “Keeping neighbors safe is one of the most important responsibilities of our state government. It is very worrisome for me as a public official and the mother of seven children that Governor Hochul supports the extreme bail reform laws that have turned loose drug dealers, gang members and killers onto our streets.  I know that Lee Zeldin will reverse bail reform and keep my family safe as Governor. That’s why I am endorsing Lee Zeldin.”

“As a former State Senator and Nassau’s Comptroller, I have fought against runaway taxes in New York State,” said Nassau County Comptroller Elaine Phillips. “The $1 billion dollar commuter tax, euphemistically called ‘congestion pricing’ by Governor Hochul, was approved during her tenure as Lt. Governor. It helps to balance a bloated budget on the backs of Long Island drivers, it will drive away business, stall an already battered economy and burden taxpayers in the most regressive manner, giving no consideration to ability to pay. I know that Lee Zeldin will stop the out-of-control spending and taxes that have characterized Hochul’s tenure in Government. I am with Lee.”

“While the Governor claims that she is not for defunding the police, her actions say just the opposite,” announced Rich Nicolello, Presiding Officer of the Nassau Legislature.  “She selected a Lt. Governor who is an unapologetic proponent of defunding the police and she just appointed a deputy secretary for intergovernmental affairs who is also an ardent ‘police defunder’. Lee Zeldin will keep us safe and he will never defund the police. We need Lee for a better and safer New York.”

“As a City Mayor, parent and former school teacher, I am glad that Congressman Lee Zeldin is fighting for parents’ rights,” said Glen Cove Mayor Pam Panzenbeck. “Even parents who support the use of masks for their children are outraged that the Governor has placed her governmental bureaucracy in charge of parenting decisions ahead of moms, dads and our children’s guardians. Lee Zeldin is standing with parents and that is why I am standing with him.”

“Congressman Lee Zeldin has fought to control taxes and has delivered for Long Island families time and time again,” announced Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor Joe Saladino.  “He has successfully voted to cut taxes, and during his tenure in the State Senate, Lee won record school aid for Long Island families. We can trust Lee Zeldin to fight for taxpayers. Lee Zeldin is the only choice for New York State Governor.”

“Lee Zeldin is a fighter, and that is what Long Islanders need now more than ever,” stated Assemblyman Ed Ra. “We need a proven leader who will stop runaway taxes, support the rule of law, back our police, say ‘NO’ to Hochul’s plan to eliminate single-family homes, and reverse her extreme bail reform laws, which have turned loose killers onto our streets. Lee fought for our freedom in the U.S. Military, and now he is fighting for the future of our state. Lee Zeldin is the only choice for Governor.”  

“I am a mother, Councilwoman and a business owner,” concluded Councilwoman Laura Maier. “My business has been slammed by a Governor who is out-of-touch, my rights as a parent have been threatened by a Governor who has badly overstepped her authority, and our local government is doing the right thing for taxpayers while our Governor has abandoned residents of suburbia. I am backing Congressman Lee Zeldin for Governor because the very survival of the Empire State depends on it.”

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About Lee Zeldin
Lee Zeldin was born and raised on Long Island. He grew up in Suffolk County and graduated from William Floyd High School in Mastic Beach, where his identical twin daughters attend school today. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Albany and then his law degree from Albany Law School, becoming New York’s youngest attorney at the time at the age of 23.
Lee spent four years on Active Duty with the U.S. Army after completing ROTC and served in different capacities, including as a Military Intelligence Officer, Prosecutor, and Military Magistrate. In the summer of 2006, while assigned to the Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division, Lee deployed to Iraq with an infantry battalion of fellow paratroopers in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
In 2007, Lee returned to Suffolk County with his family. It was at this time that Lee transitioned from Active Duty to the Army Reserve, where he currently serves with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
In 2008, Lee established a successful law practice in Smithtown, NY. Elected to the New York State Senate two years later, in 2010, Lee’s been working hard every day since to keep the promises he made to the hard-working families he represents.
In the State Senate, Lee successfully fought to repeal the MTA Payroll Tax for 80 percent of employers, a job killing tax that was hurting small businesses. Lee led the successful efforts to repeal the Saltwater Fishing License Fee and create the PFC Joseph Dwyer Program, a statewide program in New York to help our returning veterans cope with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Lee also wrote the law that protects our fallen veterans and their families from protests at military burials. 
Lee was then elected to the United States Congress in 2014, representing New York’s First Congressional District, and quickly became a leading voice in America on top local, domestic and foreign policy issues.
Lee has secured many key victories for Long Island, which have included among many other successes:
Saving Plum Island, by securing the repeal of a 2008 federal law requiring the island to be sold off to the highest bidder. He also secured funding to repair the historic Plum Island Lighthouse and funding necessary to remediate environmental concerns on the island. 
  • Delivering a $2 billion Electron Ion Collider project to Brookhaven National Lab.
  • Securing $8.3 billion in much needed funding to support treatment, enforcement, and prevention for those affected by the heroin and opioid abuse crisis.
  • Working with the Army Corps of Engineers to protect our coastlines, advancing the ambitious $1.5 billion Fire Island to Montauk Point project, in addition to several other vital projects on the north and south shores of Long Island.
  • Co-Chairing the Long Island Sound Caucus and delivering vast quantities of funding for the Long Island Sound Program, National Estuary Program and SeaGrant.
  • Introducing and passing into law his Adult Day Health Care legislation for disabled veterans and opening a new health care clinic for East End veterans.
  • Co-authoring a bipartisan resolution (H.Res. 246) that passed the House opposing the anti-Israel and anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement.
  • Successfully resolving over 17,000 constituent cases in favor of NY-1 residents.
One of only two Jewish Republicans in Congress, Lee co-chairs the House Republican Israel Caucus, and serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Financial Services Committee. He also serves on four House Subcommittees.
Lee and his wife, Diana, reside in Shirley with their twin fifteen-year old daughters, Mikayla and Arianna.