Potential GOP challenger warns Hochul that a corporate tax hike would be a ‘disaster’ for New York’s economy
In a heated political landscape, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is contemplating a gubernatorial run while raising concerns over New York Governor Kathy Hochul’s potential plans to increase corporate taxes. Blakeman, who has recently won reelection, is traveling across the state to gauge support for his prospective campaign. He has voiced strong opposition to Hochul’s rumored tax hike, describing it as detrimental to the middle class and a move that could exacerbate the state’s economic challenges. “This is a tax on the middle class,” he told Fox News Digital, arguing that it would drive up inflation and push more businesses and high-income individuals out of New York, further straining the state’s economy.
The backdrop of this political maneuvering includes Hochul’s pressure from the left-wing of the Democratic Party, particularly following the election of socialist Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in New York City. Mamdani has proposed significant tax increases, including raising the corporate tax rate from 7.25% to 11.5%, which would align it with New Jersey’s rate. Blakeman and economic advocates, such as Kyle Strober from the Association for a Better Long Island, warn that such tax increases could be “potentially devastating” to the Long Island economy, which is already grappling with high living costs and taxes. They argue that the burden of these taxes would ultimately fall on the middle class, contradicting the stated goal of making New York more affordable.
As Blakeman weighs his political future, he emphasizes the need for Republican leadership to counteract what he perceives as extreme leftist policies from the new administration in New York City. He has positioned himself as a champion of traditional American values, focusing on job creation and public safety without raising taxes during his tenure. Meanwhile, Hochul’s administration has defended its record, claiming to have cut middle-class taxes and provided inflation relief. The political stakes are high, with Blakeman potentially stepping into a gubernatorial race that could reshape the balance of power in New York as both parties prepare for a contentious electoral battle ahead.
EXCLUSIVE:
While Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman weighs a gubernatorial bid, Gov.
Kathy Hochul
, D-N.Y., is reportedly considering a
corporate tax hike
– a move the New York Republican described to Fox News Digital as a “tax on the middle class.”
Blakeman said a decision about his political future is coming “very soon” as he travels across New York state to determine if he has the “support to get to the next level.”
But as Blakeman mulls his political future, he is sounding the alarm on Hochul for reportedly planning to
raise taxes
on corporations to shore up funds for the state’s budget gap and to deliver on Mayor-elect
Zohran Mamdani
‘s socialist campaign agenda,
according to Politico
.
“This is a tax on the middle class,” Blakeman told Fox News Digital. “It will make things less affordable. It will drive up inflation, and it will make New York less competitive. Corporations are already leaving our state in record numbers. Jobs are leaving our state. People are leaving our state. This
corporate tax increase
will drive more high net-worth individuals and corporations out of New York State and will be an economic disaster.”
NEW YORK LEADER PLEDGES MORE COPS, TOUGHER ICE PARTNERSHIP IF NYC ELECTS SOCIALIST MAYOR
Kyle Strober, executive director of the Association for a Better Long Island, the region’s leading economic development advocacy organization, told Fox News Digital that a corporate tax increase could be “potentially devastating” to Long Island’s economy.
STEFANIK DECRIES HOCHUL AS ‘WORST GOVERNOR IN AMERICA’ IN FIERY 2026 CAMPAIGN LAUNCH
“Long Island, whose economy is closely aligned with
New York City
, is already confronting multiple challenges, including high taxes, high costs of living, and a lack of housing driving potential employees and employers outside the region,” Strober said, adding that a corporate tax hike would “only serve to drive away additional businesses and high-income earners, who pay the majority of the state’s tax revenue.”
“When this occurs, the tax burden is shifted to Long Island’s hard working middle class. It becomes self-evident that this tax proposal would fly in direct conflict of making New York more affordable for our middle class, a stated goal of Albany leadership,” he explained.
The ABLI led efforts in 2021 and 2025 to oppose
tax hike proposals
out of Albany, particularly tax hikes on the top 1% of New Yorkers and raising the corporate tax rate.
Hochul has faced pressure from the socialist wing of the Democratic Party to raise taxes so Mamdani can deliver on his ambitious campaign promises, including fast and free buses, universal childcare and city-run grocery stores.
Mamdani campaigned on
raising taxes on the top 1%
of New Yorkers and hiking up the state’s corporate tax from 7.25% to 11.5% to match the rate in New Jersey. Any tax hikes would require Hochul’s approval in Albany.
MAMDANI LAUGHS OFF CRITICISM THAT HIS TAX HIKE PROPOSALS WILL COMPEL NEW YORKERS TO FLEE
While the comparably moderate governor endorsed Mamdani after he secured the Democratic nomination, Hochul has maintained that she won’t raise taxes on the top 1% of New Yorkers – despite Mamdani’s supporters heckling Hochul to “Tax the rich!”
“This has become a one-party state ruled by the far-left, woke,
progressive part of the Democratic Party
, now led by Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, who is an avowed social democrat,” Blakeman said, charging that Mamdani sounds like a “communist.”
“He is anti-American values,” Blakeman said. “He is against business. He will destroy the economy of the greatest financial city in the world, the financial capital of the world: New York City. And that will have a material effect on my county, which borders New York City.”
Blakeman said Hochul raising taxes on corporations would be a “disaster.” And when asked how the state should approach Mamdani following his election night success, Blakeman said Republican leadership needs to step up and “push back” in New York state.
“When he wants to do crazy things, like give free bus rides to everybody, which will be nothing more than homeless shelters on wheels, when he doesn’t want to prosecute criminals for committing crimes, when he wants to increase taxes and increase the corporate tax rate, and he wants the tax the rich, which will drive people out of New York State, and they’ll take jobs with them, we have to push back.”
AS NYC ELECTS SOCIALIST MAMDANI, NEIGHBORING COUNTY DOUBLES DOWN ON TRUMP-STYLE LEADERSHIP WITH BLAKEMAN’S WIN
While New York City handed power to its far-left flank on Election Day, neighboring Nassau County re-elected Blakeman, an ally of President Donald Trump.
“I won because I adhered to American values, American principles. I didn’t raise taxes a penny in four years. I hired 600 new law enforcement professionals. I declared Nassau County wasn’t a sanctuary county. I showed leadership and I reached out to communities that in the past, the Republican Party has ignored,” Blakeman said, explaining how he built a broad coalition of support among diverse communities.
When reached for comment, Hochul campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika told Fox News Digital that the governor has “cut middle class taxes while putting
inflation refund checks
in New Yorkers’ pockets.”
“Bruce Blakeman is the number one fanboy for Trump’s tariffs that are raising costs for families and making everything more expensive for small businesses – while the governor remains laser-focused on lowering costs, Blakeman’s shilling for Donald Trump’s tariff tax hikes,” Chitika charged.
Since winning his re-election earlier this month, Blakeman said business and political leaders have encouraged him to launch a campaign for governor, given his executive experience.
But while rumors swirl about Blakeman’s political future,
Rep. Elise Stefanik
, R-N.Y., another Trump loyalist, has already launched her
gubernatorial campaign
and secured support from New York Republican Party Chair Ed Cox and 36 New York conservative county chairs.
