New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, her Republican challenger, clashed over immigration enforcement, a recent shooting involving federal immigration agents and economic issues during a debate Tuesday, according to Fox News.
The debate began with questions about an ICE operation in the Bronx. The Department of Homeland Security said the 28-year-old Dominican national who was shot had refused to follow lawful orders during the targeted operation. A 5-year-old boy in the vehicle was unharmed, the report said.
Blakeman argued that New York’s sanctuary policies impeded cooperation between local law enforcement and ICE. He said his county had worked with the agency and removed more than 2,000 migrants with criminal records. Those figures and his account of the county’s cooperation were claims made during the debate.
Hochul criticized Blakeman for not condemning ICE’s conduct, arguing that firing into a vehicle without knowing who was inside could have endangered the child. She said New York was not a sanctuary for criminals and described ICE as out of control. Blakeman responded that Hochul’s policies contributed to the circumstances behind the shooting.
The candidates also sparred over Trump and affordability. Hochul said energy costs, grocery prices and tariffs had increased under his administration, while Blakeman accused her of deflecting from her record. He criticized New York’s taxes and utility rates; the debate account did not independently verify those comparisons.
The exchange was part of the candidates’ campaign debate. The source report presents competing claims about the shooting, immigration policy and economic conditions; it does not establish the candidates’ disputed assertions as fact.
