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By: Hellen Zaboulani
New York Republicans excitedly flocked to the Nation’s Capital for President Donald Trump’s inauguration, filled with optimism regarding the historic comeback and hopeful for other upcoming elections.
As reported by the NY Post, some 300 members of NYS’s Republican Party gathered at The Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC on Sunday. Top party leaders and elected officials gave buoyant speeches and expressed optimism about even possibly winning the governor’s seat next year for the first time in a generation. State GOP Chairman Ed Cox toasted the end of the decade-long Democratic era, which included the terms of President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden and the House speakership of Nancy Pelosi. “We have to fight, fight, fight, to help the president move his agenda forward,” Cox said during the pre-inaugural celebratory breakfast at The Mayflower.
Lee Zeldin, appointed as Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency secretary, who had run a close election as the GOP’s 2022 candidate for NY governor, said he’s elated to be given the opportunity to help push through the Republican president’s agenda. “Donald Trump was elected president because he understood this moment. He’s ready to meet this moment and prepared to lead this country to greatness,” Zeldin said
Per the Post, the two speakers who spoke next at the NY GOP breakfast are both eyeing a run against Democratic governor Kathy Hochul in 2026. They were NY Rep. Mike Lawler and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman of Long Island. The last time NYS had a Republican governor was in 2002, with former three-term Gov. George Pataki. Lawler said New Yorkers should be proud that Queens- born-and-raised Trump is back in the White House. “Floridians think Donald Trump is theirs, but we know that Donald Trump is a New Yorker through and through,” Lawler said. The congressman noted that they all had hard work ahead of them to get Congress to approve Trump’s plans for the economy and to secure the border. He also took a jab at Gov. Hochul. “Kathy Hochul is the most inept and incompetent governor in the entire country,” Lawler said.
Blakeman, a Trump ally, touted the President’s historic comeback. “They tried to put him in jail. They tried to kill him,” Blakeman said, referring to prosecutions and assassination attempts. Blakeman said his policies are in line with President Trump, including cracking down on illegal immigration.
Other GOPers and big Business moguls also attended the DC events. Among them was billionaire supermarket mogul and WABC radio talk show owner and host John Catsimatidis. “We’re about to save America,” Catsimatidis said.
The entire GOP House delegation was slated to be in DC on Monday, where there was a flurry of balls, galas, and cocktail receptions in honor of the 47th President. Per the Post, the most coveted events are the three official inaugural balls on Monday evening, where Mr. Trump himself will speak. These invitation-only events include the Commander in Chief Ball geared towards military service members, the Starlight Ball for the president’s top donors, and the Liberty Inaugural Ball focused on rank-and-file supporters.
“There’s a lot of excitement and energy. People are ecstatic that President Trump is returning and will undo the mess that Joe Biden created,” said Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn), the only Republican in NYC’s congressional delegation.
