Rep. Tom Suozzi’s Long Island House seat can go Republican: analysis

Outgoing Democrat Rep. Tom Suozzi’s Long Island seat could flip Republican in a red wave, a new analysis released Tuesday claims.

The independent Cook Political Report shifted its rating for the open seat in the 3rd Congressional district that takes in a slice of Queens as well as Nassau County from lean Democrat to toss-up.

Republican financier George Santos is facing off against Democrat Robert Zimmerman, a PR maven.

CD3 in New York is one of ten House races nationwide whose Cook report card switched Tuesday from lean Democrat to toss-up amid a Republican surge.

In its rating change, Cook said GOP groups have not invested much money into the race on behalf of Santos.

But it said GOP gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin’s strength on Long Island at the top of the ticket against incumbent Democrat Kathy Hochul could put Santos over the finish line.

“Lee Zeldin’s momentum might sweep Santos into this +8 Biden seat anyway,” the Cook analysis said.

A New York Democratic strategist told The Post, “[Hochul’s] weakness and lack of coattails will definitely cause Democrats to lose seats in the House.”

Santos said the rating change is proof he can win.

“Our momentum within the district continues to rise because, unlike my opponent who is aligning himself with Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi, I am focusing on the core issues facing the district,” Santos said.

“From day one, we have been talking to voters about the crushing effects of Biden’s record inflation, as well as the crime wave that is a result of radical, pro-criminal policy coming from the Democrats here in New York State. Voters know that I am the best candidate to tackle these crucial issues.

Santos continued, “While Robert Zimmerman chooses to campaign with Jill Biden and Kathy Hochul, I am choosing to campaign with our heroes in law enforcement that work tirelessly to keep us safe every single day. The rating shift is very encouraging as it confirms that momentum we’ve garnered on the ground, however, the only rating and poll that matters is Election Day.”

The Zimmerman campaign scoffed at the rating change and predicted the Democrat would win the seat.

“The only momentum George Santos has in this race is this story. Whether it’s polling or Nate Silver’s Five-Thirty-Eight analysis, Robert Zimmerman is in an incredibly strong position across Nassau and Queens,” said his campaign spokesman Jason Kaplan.

“Meanwhile, George Santos continues to preach his extremist views and hide his record of bailing out cop murders, wanting to jail doctors for performing an abortion, privatizing social security, and advocating against the bi-partisan infrastructure bill.”

The Suozzi seat is one of ten House seats nationwide that Cook changed Tuesday from lean Democrat to toss-up amid a Republican surge — all in districts in blue states that President Biden carried over ex-Republican President Donald Trump by 8 to 20 percentage points.

The Cook Report said there are at least six other House races in NY that are competitive and could determine whether Republicans regain control of Congress from the Democrats.

Suozzi opted not to seek re-election for his House seat and instead ran for governor, losing to Hochul in the June Democratic primary.