A coalition of mainly Latino supermarket owners in New York City are reportedly showing support for Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin after having endured rampant shoplifting.
The coalition is raising $70,000 to back Zeldin as the election swiftly approaches, the New York Post reported Monday.
Seventy entrepreneurs operating supermarkets including Foodtown, Fine Fare, and Met Foods, are reportedly giving $1,000 each to Zeldin during a fundraiser Monday in Queens, the outlet said.
The congressman has vowed to go hard against criminals who target grocers. It is a message that has not fallen on deaf ears, according to Nelson Eusebio, the leader of government relations for the National Supermarket Association.
“These are Hispanic supermarket owners who have previously voted with the Democrats,” he said during an interview with the outlet, adding they have become weary of the situation and wanted results.
“We are frustrated and tired of Democrats saying that bail reform has not affected crime negatively,” Carlos Collado, a Democrat who owns a pair of supermarkets in the Bronx, said, adding, “We are seeing a different reality.”
Social media users also reacted to the Post’s story, one person writing, “Bless those that have given, as well as those that want to, but are maybe running short this month. Latinos and ALL NY’ers want safety in their neighborhoods. They don’t just want to ‘feel safe’ as Huchul says, they want to actually BE SAFE.”
“New York definitely needs a change… democrats are in office now so why would you reElect them?” another commented.
During Tuesday’s debate, Zeldin said he is running to win the governorship to fight crime in the state, Breitbart News reported:
“Kathy Hochul supports cashless bail,” Zeldin said. “As soon as it got implemented, she was out there bragging about it. She chose the champion of the defund the police movement and the architect of cashless bail Brian Benjamin [to be her lieutenant governor]. Yeah. That guy who got arrested and had to resign. That was her first big decision to make as governor.”
“We need to repeal cashless ball. We need to make our streets safe again. I’m running to take back our streets and to support unapologetically our men and women in law enforcement,” he continued.
Skyrocketing crime is among the main issues for American voters looking toward the fast-approaching midterm elections, a Rasmussen Reports poll found in August.