Crime is bad in New York. While some will try to claim it’s because of the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision, the violence predates that by quite a while.

How bad is it?

Well, the Republican Party’s nominee for governor had the violent crime problem drop right on his front door. Literally.

A shooting erupted outside the Long Island home of Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) on Sunday afternoon. The New York Republican gubernatorial candidate and his wife were not home at the time of the shooting, but his teen daughters experienced the frightening situation that left them “shaken.”

Around 2:18 p.m. on Sunday, two people were shot outside of Zeldin’s home in Shirley, New York.

“My 16-year-old daughters, Mikayla and Arianna, were at our house doing homework, while my wife, Diana, and I were in the car, having just departed the Bronx Columbus Day Parade in Morris Park,” Zeldin said in a news release.

“After my daughters heard the gunshots and the screaming, they ran upstairs, locked themselves in the bathroom and immediately called 911,” Zeldin stated. “They acted very swiftly and smartly every step of the way and Diana and I are extremely proud of them.”

Zeldin said one of the bullets landed “just 30 feet” from his daughters.

…

Zeldin concluded, “Like so many New Yorkers, crime has literally made its way to our front door. My family is grateful to all who have reached out and we will provide another update when we can.”

Zeldin has been critical of current Gov. Kathy Hochul and her inability to address the crime problems sweeping the state, particularly in New York City.

This is likely to change that rhetoric in the least. Instead, it’s possible that it will give him a greater moral standing among voters. After all, this had to be scary for everyone involved.

Now, first and foremost, this looks like a coincidence. I know some don’t believe in them, but they happen. There’s no evidence this had anything to do with Zeldin. It just happened to take place at his address.

With that said, let’s keep in mind that Zeldin doesn’t exactly live in the slums, where most people think of violent crime happening. While I don’t know New York neighborhoods particularly well, it’s rare that a gubernatorial candidate comes out of the housing projects.

Oh, they might have lived there at one time, but by the time they’re running for governor, they’re living in much nicer neighborhoods.

And two people were shot in such a neighborhood. In New York City.

I’m going to take a stab in the dark and say it wasn’t someone with a concealed carry permit that carried out the shooting. Let’s call it a hunch.

The truth is that while Hochul has been pushing gun control left and right, criminals are ignoring all the laws–both old and new, it should be noted–and doing whatever they want. They’re not getting permits. They’re not jumping through hoops to carry lawfully. They’re breaking the law because that’s what criminals do.

Hochul has focused on guns and accomplished nothing. Now, Zeldin has blood on his doorstep and two scared daughters who no longer feel safe in their own home.

That’s bad news for Hochul who may not have the public support one might imagine. How might this play out between now and November?

Don’t get me wrong, it’s an uphill slog for Zeldin, but we’ll have to see how it all shakes out.