CNBC is covering Monday's campaigns ahead of the election.
People familiar with the matter say that some of Hochul's top donors are worried about Zeldin's surge in the polls.
According to these people, Hochul's corporate backers pushed her to change tactics after the Republican narrowed her lead.
According to data from FiveThirtyEight, Hochul was in front of Zeldin by an average of 14 points. Zeldin was closing in on Hochul, who was up by an average of six percentage points, according to a survey by RealClearPolitics. Hochul had a four point lead over Zeldin at the time of the October poll.
Many of the people who talked to Hochul did so on the condition of anonymity, so they could speak freely about their conversations. A person from Hochul's campaign did not return a call.
Hochul has been told by business leaders to stop focusing on the impact of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the Wade decision. Those familiar with the conversations said that they advised her to show how she would fight inflation and crime.
The people said that other donors tried to convince her to fire Bragg, who is often blamed for an increase in crime in the city. Hochul said she has no plans to remove Bragg from office because he is a lawmaker.
Hochul has been calling on wealthy donors to give more money as Zeldin has gained steam in the polls. According to data from Ad Impact, Hochul and her allies spent over $5 million on TV, radio and digital ads last week, while Zeldin and groups behind him spent over $8 million.
State campaign finance records show that Bernard Schwartz gave over $69,000 to Hochul. He told CNBC that Hochul has been encouraged to focus more on the economy by other people. He isn't sure if it's enough to solidify her win.
Schwartz was worried about Zeldin's comeback in the polls. I am not sure if that message is projected out by the Democrats because the economy should be a better point for the Democrats.
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 261,000 in September. The rate went up.
As Zeldin is closing in on Hochul in the polls, a Democratic advisor who counts many Hochul donors as clients said he is having "PTSD". Zeldin had a surge similar to Trump's victory over Clinton.
The president and CEO of the New York business lobbying group Partnership for New York City said that Hochul was too tolerant of crime.
Hochul's messaging seems to have been affected by the encouragement to focus more on the economy and crime. One attendee told CNBC that Hochul spoke to a group of over 100 people at a private event on Wall Street. Manhatta is a restaurant on the 60th floor of the Liberty St. tower in the financial district. The attendee said that tickets for a table went up to $50,000.
Some people have suggested to Hochul that she fire Bragg to show voters that she wants to take on crime in the state. The New York Police Department reported in October that crime increased in the Big Apple.
Bragg has been criticized for the increase in crime in New York. Bragg was elected as Manhattan's district attorney in 2021. He is going to have Allen Weisselberg testify against his previous employer.
During the debate between Hochul and Zeldin, the governor suggested that it was up to the voters to decide Bragg's fate. Zeldin said he would remove Bragg from office if he became governor.
Zeldin was told by Hochul that someone who is duly elected can't be thrown out.
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