NYS court officers unions back Blakeman in rare governor endorsement: ‘It’s about public safety’

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Fitz-Gibbon, J., Sheehan, K., & Danbara, K. (2026, October 21). NYS court officers unions back Blakeman in rare governor endorsement: ‘It’s about public safety’. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/21/us-news/nys-court-officers-unions-back-blakeman-in-rare-governor-endorsement/

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New York Post · collected 2026-10-21 · by Jorge Fitz-Gibbon, Kevin Sheehan, Kalohe Danbara

Quick Summary

New York State court officers unions endorsed Republican Bruce Blakeman for governor, marking the first time in at least 20 years that these unions have backed a candidate. Union leaders cited public safety concerns, stating that current conditions put their members at risk due to understaffing and outdated equipment. They also criticized recent bail reform laws they believe contribute to increased violence inside courthouses. The endorsement reflects court officers' desire for stronger support from the governor’s office on issues of law enforcement funding and security measures.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-21, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

On October 21, 2026, the New York State Supreme Court Officers and Court Officers associations endorsed Republican Bruce Blakeman for governor, marking the first time in at least two decades that these unions have backed a gubernatorial candidate. The endorsement came during a press conference outside Manhattan Criminal Court, where Patrick Cullen, president of the New York State Supreme Court Officers Association, stated that "this election is about more than politics; it’s about public safety and respect for the rule of law." The unions cited Blakeman's focus on public safety and his support for law enforcement as reasons for their endorsement. They also criticized Governor Kathy Hochul and state Democrats for leaving court officers' ranks depleted and putting them in harm's way, emphasizing that they want a candidate who prioritizes these issues at the state level.

Written for “NYS Court Officers Unions Endorsement” on 2026-10-21, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.65, but 1 quote(s) could not be found in the article and the other 1 are attributed speech rather than the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 97183: no verified evidence · logged 2026-10-21

Story

📰 NYS Court Officers Unions Endorsement
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

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Claims extracted
20
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
5%
1 of 20 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
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Analyzed 2026-10-21 · how these are computed

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Publisher

New York Post · 12553 article(s) · 33 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 33 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Jorge Fitz-Gibbon
47 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Kevin Sheehan
7 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 “As attorney general, I will launch a sweeping transit-crime crackdown,” Komatireddy said.
🔮 You used to be able to walk through there by the jetty,” said Hazzard Ho, 32, who was shocked to find that he couldn’t traverse the beach with his Labrador mix, Chef.
🔮 Locals such as Bob, 77, grew worried Sunday that the high tide would bring another round of flooding.
🔮 Roberts, who is seven months pregnant, grabbed her son, forcing the would-be kidnapper to flee.
🔮 “The lady grabbed him by his shirt on his shoulder, and she wouldn’t let go.
Also by Kevin Sheehan
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 7 articles by Kevin Sheehan →
Kalohe Danbara
12 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 Farber sentenced Weinstein to 15 years in lockup — where the disgraced Hollywood mogul could die behind bars — after prosecutors said they had recordings of him offering a podcaster $1.75m to release videos of witnesses “to contaminate the jury pool and to reach the jurors before and after the trial.”
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Also by Kalohe Danbara
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 12 articles by Kalohe Danbara →

Topics

Democrats Nassau County New York State Republican Supreme Court Officers and Court Officers

Subjects

Blakeman PERSON · 2× Bruce Blakeman PERSON · 2× Democrats NORP · 2× Hochul PERSON · 2× Kathy Hochul PERSON · 2× Nassau County GPE · 2× Republican NORP · 2× New York State GPE · 1× Patrick Cullen PERSON · 1× Supreme Court Officers and Court Officers ORG · 1×

Narrative

The Supreme Court Officers and Court Officers associations said the Nassau County executive gets the nod because “he has made public safety a central part of his public service” — and said Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Democrats have left their ranks depleted and put them in harm’s way on the job. “This election is about more than politics, it’s about public safety, respect for the rule of law,” Patrick Cullen, president of the New York State Supreme Court Officers Association, said at a press conference outside Manhattan Criminal Court.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-21
🔮 “After this year we will have spent $10 billion on illegal migrants who just claim asylum.

Claims (20 extracted, 1 hedged)

New York State court officers endorsed Republican Bruce Blakeman for governor on Wednesday, a rare move that marks the first time in at least 20 years the unions have backed a candidate for the office. asserted
unions → endorse → office
The Supreme Court Officers and Court Officers associations said the Nassau County executive gets the nod because “he has made public safety a central part of his public service” — and said Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Democrats have left their ranks depleted and put them in harm’s way on the job. “This election is about more than politics, it’s about public safety, respect for the rule of law,” Patrick Cullen, president of the New York State Supreme Court Officers Association, said at a press conference outside Manhattan Criminal Court. asserted
Cullen → say → Court
“Bruce Blakeman has made public safety a central part of his public service,” Cullen said. asserted
Cullen → make → service
“His record as Nassau County executive and his emphasis on supporting law enforcement reflects the priorities that court officers want to see taken seriously at the state level.” asserted
officers → support → level
Sgt. Thomas Hickey, who heads the state Court Officers Association, said the union “went back 20 something years, and none of us can remember openly, publicly endorsing a candidate for governor. asserted
none → head → governor
“And one of us, no matter how far we went back, can remember endorsing a Republican.” asserted
we → go → Republican
The union chiefs said their ranks have thinned out under Hochul and the state’s Democratic leadership, with courthouse equipment outdated and more violent offenders walking the halls due to lax bail reform laws that have created a revolving door of justice. asserted
that → say → justice
“They see that the people coming in don’t have any regard for law and order inside the courthouse,” Hickey said. asserted
Hickey → see → courthouse
“They realize there is no consequences for being disruptive so they come back and commit crimes again and again inside the courthouse.” asserted
they → realize → courthouse
He said metal detectors at courthouse entrances are outdated and can too easily be bypassed. asserted
detectors → say → entrances
“These people are bringing in 4D weapons that are not picked up by magnetometers,” he said. asserted
he → bring → magnetometers
“So, what you have is a situation where there’s less court officers because we’re short staffed, and there are guys coming in with a knife that they can’t detect.” asserted
they → ’ → that
Blakeman, who trails Hochul in the polls just two weeks before the elections, has harped on public safety throughout his campaign. asserted
who → trail → campaign
He’s repeatedly slammed Democrats in Albany and in New York City for underfunding cops, allowing violent criminals to walk because of lax bail laws, and not backing law enforcement. asserted
criminals → slam → enforcement
“Kathy Hochul, her priority is are all upside down,” Blakeman told reporters. asserted
Blakeman → tell → reporters
“After this year we will have spent $10 billion on illegal migrants who just claim asylum. uncertain
who → spend → asylum
They get free food, free housing, free transportation, free cell phone and free health care. asserted
They → get → food
“That’s money that I would be spending on law enforcement, on our court system, on infrastructure, on our schools, are on our hospitals,” he railed. asserted
he → ’ → hospitals
The two unions represent about 4,000 active and retired members between them. asserted
unions → represent → them
The officers patrol and keep the peace in courtrooms throughout the state. asserted
officers → patrol → state
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