Last week, Congressman Lee Zeldin, a Republican from Long Island and a former state senator, announced that he’s “actively exploring” a 2022 run for governor.

He’s not alone.

Both Representative Tom Reed and Representative Elise Stefanik have also said they were looking at possibly running for governor. 

When asked what he would bring to the state that Reed and Stefanik do not, Zeldin said the question was premature.

“This isn’t by any means at the stage of the conversation where I am comparing myself to Republican colleagues who I work very well with,” he told Capital Tonight. “I’m at the point in the process of actively calling people from different walks of life around the state to get their feedback on the race, on the governor, and what they want out of their next governor.”

There was some speculation in Newsday that Zeldin might simply be “toying with an anti-Cuomo campaign” in order to help raise money and boost his visibility.  When asked about that calculation, Zeldin again said he began looking into running when other people asked him to.

“I was receiving calls and texts and emails from throughout the state from people who were very passionately asking for me to run, talking about this next race as if it were a last stand, a great opportunity to save our state – to put ourselves on a trajectory where instead of people fleeing the state…that we can once again put our state in a much better direction than the way it’s heading,” he said.

Zeldin did not provide a timeline for when he might consider announcing his candidacy.