Marc Molinaro Courts Queens Votes By Tossing Pizza Dough

OZONE PARK, NY – Republican governor hopeful Marc Molinaro stopped by a Queens pizzeria just hours before polls closed Tuesday, throwing dough in an effort to persuade last minute voters to give him their support.

The politician stepped behind the counter at Aldo’s Pizza in Ozone Park, showing pie making skills he said he picked up at a pizzeria where he worked as a teen.

"I know little about throwing dough," he said. "Unlike the governor, I don’t put any of the money in my campaign accounts."

Molinaro, who started his political career at 19 as the mayor of a small upstate town, chastised his opponent Gov. Andrew Cuomo for being a politician that doesn’t listen to the people and who spends too much time campaigning for a 2020 presidential run.

Julie Killian, Molinaro's running mate for Lt. Governor, echoed those statements and promised that their administration would return respect to the teaching profession and to police officers.

Molinaro said that when he decided to run for governor, the first place he visited was Queens where he met with Queens GOP Chairwoman Joann Ariola and Councilman Eric Ulrich, the borough’s sole Republican. Ulrich was again with him Tuesday.

Molinaro then boasted about a recent Sienna College poll which showed him making considerable gains on Cuomo’s lead.

“We’re tied on Long Island and the Hudson Valley and we’re beating him big time in upstate New York,” he said.

“New Yorker’s know they pay among the highest taxes in the nation and they’re tired of it." He also blamed Cuomo for dropping the ball on the subway system and infrastructure statewide.

“He’s more interested in running for president and national office than he is about the problems facing ordinary New Yorkers,” he added.

In a city where politicians can destroy their career on how they treat pizza – remember when presidential hopeful John Kasich used a fork? – Molinaro showed he knew his stuff, slipping behind the counter and locals watched him work.

Lead image by Jon Cronin/Patch - Second photo courtesy of Queens County GOP