NY Governor Candidate Bruce Blakeman Visits Rebbe’s Ohel
Nassau County Executive and Republican candidate for New York governor Bruce Blakeman visited the Rebbe’s Ohel, just days before Rosh Hashanah.
by COLlive Editor · COLliveBy COLlive reporter
Nassau County Executive and Republican candidate for New York governor Bruce Blakeman visited the Rebbe’s Ohel in Queens Tuesday, just days before Rosh Hashanah.
Blakeman, who is Jewish, was accompanied by Five Towns Shliach Rabbi Zalman Wolowik and a group of visitors at the holy site.
Blakeman, who is challenging Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul in this year’s gubernatorial election, used the visit to deliver a Rosh Hashanah message emphasizing faith, personal responsibility and the importance of using one’s abilities to improve the world.
“I want to wish everybody a Shana Tovah, that you have a healthy, happy, beautiful New Year,” he said.
Blakeman then spoke about the source of the blessings people receive.
“Remember, everything we get, all the blessings we get, are from above, from Hashem,” he said. “But He gives us the strength to make decisions and to take action.”
“We need to use that strength in a positive way to make a better world,” he added.
Blakeman concluded by wishing success to the community “in all of your endeavors, personally and collectively.”
Blakeman also visited the gravesite of Ari Halberstam HYD, the Chabad boy who was murdered in the 1991 terror attack.
The Ohel visit comes as Blakeman campaigns statewide for governor, seeking to unseat Hochul in the November election. Blakeman launched his gubernatorial campaign in December 2025 and is endorsed by President Donald Trump.
The race has recently drawn increased attention, with a poll released by Blakeman’s campaign showing him within four points of Hochul among likely voters, although other recent polling has shown Hochul with a larger lead.
Blakeman has made affordability, crime and retaining families in New York central themes of his campaign. His visit to the Ohel places the Republican candidate in a familiar setting for many Jewish voters in the New York region, just as the Jewish community prepares to enter the new year.
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