Striking a Make America Safe Again tone, Republican New York gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman blasted Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul as the "most pro-criminal governor" during a Monday campaign event riding the New York City subway system, which has been plagued by violent crimes and commuter safety fears.

"I have not heard from one person, and from all the people, that it's safer on the subways and public transportation in New York," Blakeman said as he rode the subway. "I've heard just the opposite. Everybody says they feel less safe."

"So we want them to feel safe," he said.

VIOLENT TRANSIT ATTACKS IN ATLANTA, NEW YORK AND CHARLOTTE FUEL CALLS FOR TOUGHER TRACKING OF REPEAT OFFENDERS

Blakeman, a Nassau County executive, is a former commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Now running for governor, he was campaigning Monday in the densely populated city, which is overwhelmingly a Democratic stranglehold.

"Hire more police officers, hire more conductors, clean up our subways and get help for those who are emotionally ill – get them help that they need; not have them roam around our subways," Blakeman told reporters as he rode the subway, targeting both the governor and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani in the deep-blue area.

MAMDANI UNVEILS SWEEPING NYPD USE-OF-FORCE REVIEW, BUT STOPS SHORT OF FULFILLING KEY CAMPAIGN PROMISES

"The crime in the subways has gone up tremendously under Kathy Hochul and Zohran Mamdani," Blakeman lamented. "They are not committed to public safety. I will be committed to public safety. I will make sure that our public transportation is safer and cleaner for the traveling public."

"That's how you get more people back in public transportation, not by putting a tax on them with congestion pricing, which is nothing more than a tax on the middle class," he added.

NEW YORKERS TAKE ZOHRAN MAMDANI FREE BUS PROMISE LITERALLY AS MTA LOSES MILLIONS IN SKIPPED FARES

Blakeman hit Democrats for being negative influences on public safety, and Hochul specifically, for having "reduced the number of conductors on our trains and subways."

MAMDANI CLASHES WITH DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS' PUSH TO ABOLISH POLICE AND PRISONS

More police patrolling the subways and improving the lighting in dimly lit subway systems are on Blakeman's priority list, but he also discussed having more conductors manning the subways.

Hochul vetoed Albany legislation that would have required conductors on more subway trains, leaving the MTA’s one-person train operation program in place versus the June 2025 state-passed bill requiring at least two-person crews — an operator and conductor.

SHOCK POLL: POWERFUL BLUE STATE GOV'S LEAD SHRINKS TO SINGLE DIGITS WEEKS BEFORE ELECTION

Hochul vetoed that bill on Dec. 5, 2025, arguing it would restrict MTA modernization efforts and cost up to $10 million annually.

"Police are very important, but I think people feel very comfortable and very safe when they see a conductor," Blakeman said. "I want to increase the numbers so that people feel safe."

Blakeman called Hochul "the most pro-criminal governor in the United States of America," citing several criminal-justice and immigration policies.

HOCHUL BOASTS 'I JUST BANNED IT' AS NEW YORK OUTLAWS LOCAL POLICE PARTNERSHIPS WITH ICE

"Whether it’s cashless bail, Raise the Age, the HALT Act, Clean Slate, or refusing to cooperate with ICE and federal agents, she has made us less safe," he said, striking at Democrat-backed legislation long rebuked by police groups and Republican public safety hawks.

Cashless bail limits when judges can require defendants to put up money to be released. Raise the Age generally keeps 16- and 17-year-olds out of adult criminal court, while the HALT Act limits solitary confinement and changes prison disciplinary practices. The Clean Slate law seals certain criminal convictions from public view after a designated waiting period.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

"People feel less safe in every community that I go to in New York State," Blakeman said.

Republicans have had their share of good and bad election nights this century, but they’ve usually been able to count on the heartland.

Once evenly divided, rural voters have become substantially more Republican over the last two decades. Nearly two-thirds of these voters backed President Trump in the 2024 election.

REPUBLICANS FACE BRUTAL MIDTERM HEADWINDS. SIX FORCES COULD HELP THEM DEFY HISTORY.

Today, just under half of rural voters say they’ll support the GOP again in November.

Like other groups, rural Americans are concerned about paying the bills. Nineteen percent said the rising cost of living is their biggest economic problem in a recent survey, with gas and energy costs not far behind.

The Trump administration has, in part, tried to counter those anxieties by talking about job growth and the AI boom, but rural voters are frustrated about those issues too.

Less than a quarter of rural voters say the economy is in good shape, and unemployment is a focal point: 8% called a lack of jobs and unemployment their biggest economic issue, and only 28% thought there were good or excellent job opportunities in their communities.

DAVID MARCUS: ON THE GROUND IN MIDDLE AMERICA, FOUR ISSUES WILL DECIDE THE SENATE, AND NONE ARE AFFORDABILITY

Data centers are part of the story too. Only 2% called it their biggest economic problem, but that number is larger than it seems. For 1 in 50 rural voters, data centers are a bigger problem than housing, the cost of living, or getting a job.

These factors have put the Republicans in a tough spot all over the map.

They are a reason why heartland states like Ohio and Iowa have been competitive most of the year and why more rural districts, including some that Trump won by double digits, are becoming margin-of-error races.

Even setting the polls aside, there are signs that the rural vote is on shakier footing. TV viewers in Wyoming will see ads this week for Republican candidate Chuck Gray that don’t mention Trump or the GOP. Two years ago, Trump won 71.6% of the vote there — his best performance in any state, in any election.

Low rural turnout or party switching would make many races closer than the GOP would like, including in Florida, Mississippi and South Carolina.

Four states are worth singling out thanks to another complicating factor.

TRUMP-ALIGNED CONSERVATIVE EMERGES FROM CROWDED PRIMARY TO DECIDE WHO FILLS WYOMING’S LONE HOUSE SEAT

This year, prominent independent candidates are running for Senate against a Republican in four rural-heavy states: Idaho, Montana, Nebraska and South Dakota.

They are pushing anti-establishment policies like congressional term limits and lobbying bans and have a heavy focus on corruption, the top voter concern in last week’s Fox News poll.

And all four say they won’t caucus with either party or would form their own independent caucus if they were elected.

With the Democratic brand still relatively weak around the country and abysmal in these states, the party has stepped out of the race entirely in three of the four (in Montana, a Democrat is staying on the ballot, though support for her has declined).

Normally, frustrated partisans stay home in scenarios like these, leaving the incumbent party to win by a more modest margin. This year, those voters have the ability to turn out for a different candidate, so the margin may get narrower.

FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: AS THE HOUSE FALLS, THE SENATE STAYS IN PLAY

All these states have been competitive over the last decade or so. Former Sen. Jon Tester, a Democrat, held on to his seat in Montana in 2018; Republicans have scored single-digit victories in South Dakota and Nebraska (where the same independent is running again this year), and even Idaho had a gubernatorial race that came within 15 points back in 2014.

These states could be close again.

In this week’s Power Rankings, two gubernatorial races get more competitive as the final two weeks of campaigning begin.

Florida

The Sunshine State is the beating heart of the "MAGA" movement. Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis have posted stronger results each time they’ve run, with the latter winning his last re-election bid by nearly 20 points.

Thanks in part to those performances, Republicans have carved out structural advantages, including a 1.5 million registered voter gap and a resilient get-out-the-vote operation.

But DeSantis’ first win came within around 30,000 votes (or 0.4 points) and in a similar environment to the one we’re in now.

Here, Hispanic voters will play an outsized role, and polls suggest that a large chunk of them have shifted away from the GOP. In last week’s national Fox survey, 31% of Hispanic voters said they preferred the Republican candidate over the Democrat. That’s down 12 points from their support for Trump in 2024.

The Republican candidate, Rep. Byron Donalds, will be pleased to have the endorsement of DeSantis. He remains popular in the state. Donalds still has the edge against Democrat and former Rep. David Jolly, who is hoping former President Bill Clinton can shore up his support when they appear together for the first time today.

Still, this race is no sure thing for the GOP. Florida moves from Likely R to Lean R.

Nebraska

In Nebraska, Republican Gov. Jim Pillen is looking for a second term in office. He cruised to victory the first time with a 23-point win, but with both suburban and rural voters wavering on Trump this cycle, this could be a tougher battle.

Three other factors are playing a role.

First, the presence of Dan Osborn, one of the four notable independents on the ballot in Senate races this year, could boost Democratic turnout for challenger Lynne Walz in a governor’s race that would otherwise attract less attention.

There’s Pillen himself, who has faced some local pushback over a 5% budget cut and hiring freeze within state government.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Finally, the ballot, which will feature third-party challenger Brett Lindstrom, a former state lawmaker who lost to Pillen in a Republican primary four years prior. He’ll appear on the ballot as an "America First" candidate. The party was founded in July.

Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms is set to take the debate stage Monday without her Republican opponent.