New York state Republican chairman Ed Cox is so worried that Gov. Cuomo will grab endorsements from GOP officials for his re-election that he’s sent a letter to party leaders and activists pleading with them not to defect.
“I’m writing today because I know that the Cuomo administration is reaching out for your support. As state party chairman, I ask that before you make any decision, you consider the abysmal record of the Cuomo administration,” Cox said in a letter released Tuesday.
“The Cuomo administration is well known for their heavy-handed tactics in winning support, but for the sake of New York’s future, I hope I can count on Republicans such as yourself to be strong and to live up to our Republican convictions.”
Cuomo has about $30 million in his campaign treasury and a Republican challenger has yet to step forward.
Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino is considering a run and business mogul Donald Trump is making noise about entering the race.
The situation is so dire that some top Republicans are concerned that prominent GOP-leaning business leaders – believing that the Democratic governor is a shoo-in — will abandon the party and endorse him.
“When out of power, our job as a party is to provide loyal opposition, not for opposition’s sake but for the sake of the governing philosophy and principles that will advance our state. The Republican Party is New York’s foremost voice for freedom, economic growth, lower taxes, fiscal responsibility, limited government and local control. My job as party cChairman is to help advance candidates that can promote those ideals,” Cox wrote.
He rapped Cuomo’s record, including the governor’s refusal to support hydraulic fracking to boost economic development upstate.