Candidate safety is a top priority following Charlie Kirk shooting
Political activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed in Utah Wednesday. The political violence is sounding alarm bells in New York City, as Election Day is less than eight weeks away.
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Political activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed in Utah Wednesday. The political violence is sounding alarm bells in New York City, as Election Day is less than eight weeks away.
Eric Adams, Andrew Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa and Zohran Mamdani are all fighting to be the next New York City mayor. In the coming weeks, the candidates will be campaigning throughout the city. Wednesday's violence sparks concern on how security will be handled at these upcoming events.
"Unlike a presidential candidate, mayoral candidates don't have Secret Service. They will have NYPD around them. Certainly. And I'm sure the NYPD will make sure that rallies and political, campaign events will have more heightened security," said professor Christopher Malone, associate provost at Farmingdale State College.
News 12 also spoke with retired NYPD Detective Phil Grimaldi, who suggested these campaign events occur inside.
"You can usually cut off a lot of the entrances and exits. You can now use magnetometers. And you can use a lot of different areas. You can search bags if they come in with bags or you could prohibit anything that they're bringing into the location," Grimaldi said.
He told News 12 if he was in charge of an outdoor political event, he would ensure snipers are covering all the roofs in the area.
Professor Malone also added that this tragedy may drive voters toward a candidate that is tougher on crime. It also may sway candidates' opinions.
