#Lee Zeldin taps Alison Esposito as running mate in NY governor bid

Presumptive Republican front-runner for governor Lee Zeldin selected a veteran female NYPD inspector as his running mate for lieutenant governor — elevating public safety as a campaign issue for the statehouse.

Zeldin tapped Alison Esposito, deputy inspector at the 70th Precinct in Brooklyn, to be his No. 2 as he seeks the nomination to take on Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Esposito is retiring from the police department to run for public office. She joined the force in 1997.

Last year, she considered running for mayor of New York City.

“Time and again we’ve heard politicians talk about what they’re going to do to fight crime. Well, I’ve actually done it,” Esposito said Wednesday during a press conference at 1 Police Plaza.

“My job was to protect the innocent, and keep the people in the city of New York safe. My job now is to keep the people of the state safe.”

Zeldin, a Long Island congressman, said, “[Esposito] has instilled fear in the hearts of criminals everywhere.”

He said New York needs to end one-party Democratic rule in Albany, scrap COVID-19 mandates and change Albany’s soft-on-crime policies.

“If you believe that cashless bail should be repealed, and that judges should have the discretion to a dangerousness stand and flight risk and past criminal record, and seriousness of the offense, then get involved in our effort and help us win.”

“If you believe that we should be backing the blue instead of supporting them less, then join our campaign.”

A daughter of a former NYPD chief, Esposito’s record is not without blemish. She was docked 20 vacation days in 2017 when she was a captain for failing to safeguard her firearm, badge and ID, according to police records.

She once posed as a prostitute undercover and spent time in Peru to raise money to pay for life-altering cleft palate and lip surgeries for children there.

Zeldin supporters said they were excited about his choice of Esposito as his running mate.

“Alison brings experience to the key issue of the day — public safety and law enforcement,” said state Conservative Party chairman Jerry Kassar, a Brooklyn resident who knows Esposito.

“I’m very high on her candidacy.”

Zeldin’s choice comes on the same day a new rival for the GOP nomination, millionaire businessman Harry Wilson, opened his wallet to launch a $12 million ad blitz to promote his candidacy.

A day after entering the race, the Wilson ad buy starts with a 30-second bio spot, showing where he grew up in upstate Johnstown.

The corporate turnaround experts says he grew up working-class, with his father “tending bar” and his mother working as a seamstress.

“I’ve spent my life fixing problems and turning things around. And I can turn around New York. I’ll end bloated budgets, repeal the Cuomo/Hochul tax hikes,” Wilson says, looking into the camera with a snowy background in his hometown.

“It won’t be easy. The politicians want business as usual, but they’ve never met someone like me before — willing to stop their paychecks if they fail to act. For my family and yours, we will turn around New York.”

During the press conference, Zeldin was asked about the effort to draft Republican former three-term Gov. George Pataki to run again to become New York’s chief executive, first reported by The Post on Monday. Pataki, 76, has ruled out a run — at least for now.

He praised Pataki, saying the former governor’s “historic” victory toppling three-term liberal Democrat Mario Cuomo in 1994 “changed the trajectory of New York state for the better.”

Zeldin joked that he would “frame a photograph” of him and Esposito winning the 2022 election and autograph it for Pataki — to accompany the former governor’s 1994 campaign victory photo.

Other GOP candidates seeking the nomination include former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino and Andrew Giuliani, the son of ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani who worked as a White House aide to President Donald Trump.