Exclusive | Meet Bruce Blakeman, the NY pol taking on Dem Gov. Hochul who started campaigning at age 7, served as Nancy Reagans driver
Long before Bruce Blakeman became New York’s gubernatorial candidate for change, he was a lowly college kid tasked with driving Nancy Reagan around.The Nassau County executive’s first real political gig — as a volunteer for Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign— unexpectedly landed him in proximity to the fiercely protective soon-to-be first lady.“She liked and trusted me,” Blakeman told The Post in a recent interview. “She was worried about her husband’s safety.She was very, very protective of her Ronnie.”The unglamorous job of carting “Fancy Nancy” to fundraisers impressed upon him the value loyalty, discretion and political access — though the story reveals Blakeman has long been destined for the political spotlight.“I got involved in politics at age 7.
On Halloween, I went door-to-door with two bags — one to collect candy and another to give out literature for my dad’s campaign,” he said.“People loved it,” he said, “when homeowners saw a boy volunteering for his dad’s campaign instead of just getting treats.”The longtime public servant is now seeking the highest office in the state, vying to become New York’s first Republican governor in more than two decades on November 3.Blakeman, 71, is broadly considered the underdog in trying to topple incumbent Democrat Gov.
Kathy Hochul — but he’s always been a risk taker.Three years after he was elected to the Hempstead Town Board in 1993, the Long Island native took a chance — running in a blue district for the newly created Nassau County Legislature.He won — and even became the body’s first presiding officer.“I took a risk,” he recalled.“I was up for re-election [for the Hempstead Board].
Instead, I ran for the Nassau County Legislature in a district drawn for a Democrat and I won.”It was an early example of Blakeman silencing the doubters.Former US Sen.Alfonse D’Amato, a powerhouse in Nassau County GOP politics who’s known Blakeman for 40...