The Votes Are In. Are We Ready To Listen?
By: Chaskel Bennett
The morning after an election forces a reckoning between the outcome we wanted and the political reality that we must now navigate. For our community, the consequences reach far beyond a disappointing headline.
On Tuesday, Governor Kathy Hochul roundly defeated GOP candidate Bruce Blakeman by 20 points. A blowout.
Twenty points. Roughly 1.2 million votes. To imagine that we could erase that margin is an exercise in delusion. While we are a formidable force in low turnout primaries and can have an outsized impact on local elections, the idea that we control New York’s electorate is an illusion manufactured in WhatsApp groups and shul hallways before contentious elections. We cannot mistake our own echo chamber for the voice of an entire state.
Bruce Blakeman has built strong relationships with the Orthodox Jewish community as Nassau County executive. His positions on antisemitism, security, Israel, and business resonate with many Conservative-leaning Orthodox Jewish voters. He devoted considerable attention to our community throughout his campaign.
But Blakeman never had a realistic path to victory. Not a single poll had him ahead. Many hoped for a red reprieve in deep blue New York amid a national Republican bloodbath, but hope was doing the work that all the evidence could not.
Despite our understandable frustration, political preferences, and relationship with Blakeman, sacrificing an important and critical relationship with the incumbent governor on that gamble would have been political malpractice, especially in this current climate, when access to influential friends in the highest places is hard to come by.
Hochul governs a deeply Democratic state whose largest and most influential city elected Zohran Mamdani. Our influence has always exceeded our numbers. But feeling strongly does not give us more votes. We cannot let our convictions lead us to overestimate our power.
Yes, Hochul’s association with Mamdani was a damaging optic in our community. Nevertheless, she has been responsive to our needs. She visited Orthodox communities across the city and state, cultivated relationships, and did enough legislatively to earn endorsements or at the very least, to keep communal organizations out of the race. That support did not aways extend to large swathes of the Trump-supporting rank and file, but her outreach mattered.
Hochul is not Mamdani. There, I said it.
Mamdani will never be accepted by the Orthodox electorate if he continues to jeopardize our safety and undermine our sense of security. His incessant criticism of Israel deepens the conviction that he simply does not care about our concerns. Our anger is understandable. The question is how to translate that into effective political action.
Those responsible for securing our community’s safety and essential services must work with the people who hold power and call the shots. Good intentions do not give candidates the power to act.
There is, however, a silver lining in this. Many Orthodox Jewish voters demonstrated political wisdom and maturity by supporting key Republicans while also electing Democrats to represent them in Albany and Washington.
Flatbush and Borough Park re-elected State Senator Sam Sutton and sent Joey Cohen-Saban to the State Assembly. Far Rockaway elected Pesach Osina to the Assembly. Together with Aron Wieder’s reelection in Rockland County, those victories strengthen the largest group of Orthodox Jewish members ever to serve in Albany. Voters looked beyond party labels to choose the candidates who could best meet their community’s interests.
That judgment mattered in Congressional races, too. Hakeem Jeffries, on track to become incoming House speaker, needs as many Israel-supporting moderates in his caucus as he can muster. Pro-Israel Jewish voters contributed to the reelection of Grace Meng in Queens, Gregory Meeks in Far Rockaway, Laura Gillen in the Five Towns, Tom Suozzi on Long Island, and Jared Moskowitz in South Florida. In the face of the party’s increasingly assertive DSA wing, those voices are essential at this precarious moment.
In Rockland County, the Orthodox Jewish community cast nearly 30,000 votes in an attempt to re-elect Republican Congressman Mike Lawler. A true friend and an effective, reliable representative for us, Lawler could not overcome the blue tsunami that swept the country. Lawler’s defeat was deeply painful, but the community’s extraordinary participation demonstrated a growing political strength that must be cultivated and sustained.
We must bring that same engagement to party registration. In deep blue New York, Democratic primaries often offer our best opportunity to shape who ultimately holds office. Remaining outside those contests means voluntarily surrendering influence where it matters most.
I do not presume to challenge rabbinic authority. This is a political analysis, not a directive. Party registration is a strategic tool, and we have a responsibility to understand its consequences.
Somewhere along the way, we lost sight of politics as a means of helping our community. Party affiliation became a declaration of faith, and practical decisions became tests of ideological purity.
Every election brings out the loudest extremes. Then the voting ends, the critics retreat into hibernation, and the activists and advocates are left holding the bag, responsible for securing what our community needs with the political hand they were dealt.
At a time of tremendous fear and communal challenges, our responsibility is to protect our community as it is. Wishful thinking is no substitute for political strategy. n
Chaskel Bennett is a nationally recognized Jewish communal leader and advocate who serves on the boards of several not-for-profit organizations.
New York State Unofficial Election Night Results
Sources: NYS Board of Elections and Nassau County Board of Elections
Candidate % (by Candidate) Votes (by Candidate)
Governor / Lieutenant Governor
Kathy C. Hochul / Adrienne E. Adams (D) 59.13% 3,488,826
Bruce A. Blakeman / Todd Hood (R) 39.66% 2,340,313
Comptroller
Thomas P. DiNapoli (D) 62.78% 3,702,856
Joseph Hernandez (R) 34.4% 2,028,717
Attorney General
Letitia A. James (D) 58.85% 3,471,402
Saritha Komatireddy (R) 38.89% 2,293,972
Congress 3rd District
Thomas R. Suozzi (D) 53.86% 141,870
Michael J. LiPetri Jr (R) 43.78% 115,330
Congress 4th District
Laura A. Gillen (D) 55.34% 146,755
Jeanine C. Driscoll (R) 42.19% 111,878
Congress 5th District
Gregory W. Meeks (D) 77.92% 129,931
George Marsh (R) 18.64% 31,082
State Senate 6th District
Siela A. Bynoe (D) 64.96% 64,855
Matthew J. Capp (R) 31.85% 31,797
State Senate 9th District
Lisa Malkie Vider (D) 49.71% 58,862
Patricia M. Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick (R) 47.25% 55,950
16th Assembly District
Kim Keiserman (D) 50.40% 26,226
David Hassid (R) 46.44% 24,164
20th Assembly District
Meir Fischer (D) 37.19% 18,454
Eric Ari Brown (R) 59.43% 29,491
23rd Assembly District
Pesach Osina (D) 50.87% 17,863
Thomas P. Sullivan (R) 46.97% 16,492
Town of Hempstead Supervisor
Joe Scianablo (D) 51.57% 149,597
John R. Ferretti (R) 48.12% 139,578
County Legislator District 7
Douglas J. Segan (D) 28.98% 7,499
Howard J. Kopel (R) 70.96% 18,364
