AOC says crime is DOWN and criticizes decision to put cops on subway – all while NYC crime rampant

Democratic Socialist Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won re-election on Tuesday after giving an interview in which she said crime has declined in New York, despite the city’s own statistics showing that the crime rate has increased by nearly 30 percent.

Ocasio-Cortez, who campaigned earlier on Election Day with struggling New York Governor Kathy Hochul, spoke to the radio program The breakfast club about the crime problem.

“A lot of people think crime is on the rise, when we actually see fewer shootings, when we see huge indicators of the most violent crime in New York City.”

The left-wing representative — who easily won re-election to a third term in her extremely liberal district — then criticized Mayor Eric Adams and Hochul for putting more police officers on subway platforms and claiming they were responsible for the crime during the MTA uprising.

She said: “The crime in the subway has increased, but let’s also note that crime in the subway has increased after they have committed so many more cops in the subway system. So that also tells us from a policy perspective that adding more police to the metro won’t solve this problem.’

In October, Hochul ordered 1,200 extra overtime hours per day for police officers to patrol the subway to keep New Yorkers safe.

Overall, crime in New York City was up 31.1 percent in mid-October, with felony, rape and robbery all rising double-digits. The number of murders has fallen by 14.8 percent and the number of shootings by 12.5 percent.

Crime in the New York City subway has risen by a staggering 41 percent since late October, according to… CNN.

Hochul was joined by Ocasio-Cortez on Tuesday morning in a last-ditch effort to attract voters as her advisers and top donors panicked over opponent Lee Zeldin’s sudden rise in the polls.

Both AOC and Hochul are running in today’s midterm elections and Hochul has started the early vote with a big lead, but Hochul, who inherited the governorship from Andrew Cuomo last year, is facing mounting resistance from Republican Lee Zeldin.

Zeldin’s comeback has terrified Hochul’s donors and advisers, some of whom fear she will pay for ignoring important issues like crime and economics.

Some told CNBC on Tuesday that they are “concerned” about her dwindling lead and fear she has failed to reassure New Yorkers, many of whom are terrified by the ongoing crime wave in the state and largely in New York City.

Last week, Hochul tried to attract last-minute donations with a $50,000-per-table fundraiser at Manhattan, one of New York City’s glitzy restaurants on the 60th floor of a towering downtown skyscraper.

On Tuesday, she greeted voters at a polling station in Woodside, Queens, and met members of the New York Working Families Party. Earlier in the day, Hochul appealed to voters at dinner parties in Manhattan, while Zeldin, her Republican opponent, cast his vote in Mastic Beach.

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Much of the problem for Hochul is an increase in crime in New York City that is largely attributed to Democrats such as Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams and Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.

CNBC Reports on Tuesday that Hochul’s advisers and top donors warned her to stop ignoring key voter issues like crime and the economy, but that it has largely fallen on deaf ears.

Instead, she has chosen to remind voters of her opponent’s track record in supporting anti-abortion legislation.

In a recent debate, she even told Zeldin, “I don’t know why that matters to you” when he challenged her on crime and bail reform.

While her focus on the economy seems to have increased, her stance on crime hasn’t gotten tougher.

Last week, she held a last-minute fundraiser in Manhattan, a downtown hotspot and one of New York’s most expensive restaurants, where tickets cost up to $50,000 per table. It was a last-ditch effort to attract more donations.

But her investors fear a surprise effect in today’s election, which they say could be reminiscent of Trump’s shocking victory in the 2016 presidential election.

One told CNBC anonymously that he still has “PTSD” from Trump’s victory.

Among the donors who fear Hochul isn’t delivering the right message is New York businessman Bernard Schwartz, who donated $69,000 to Hochul’s campaign.

Crimes on the transit system are also on the rise, but the crimes represent a small fraction of the passengers on the metro system and are because the number of passengers has also increased.

October has been a particularly fertile month for subway commuters, with at least five incidents to date, while there are just as many days left in the month.

There were at least two subway surgeries in September, three in June, one in April and two more in January.

Manhattan saw at least six pushes, including both fatalities. The Bronx and Brooklyn each saw at least three pushes and Queens saw one.