New York Post

I’m no Trump-alike, says Nicole le

- Carl Campanile

Republican mayoral hopeful Nicole Malliotaki­s has a message for Mayor de Blasio: “I’m not Donald Trump!”

Two days after de Blasio called Malliotaki­s a “pro-Trump Republican” and suggested that a vote for her in November is like a vote for the president, the Staten Island/Brooklyn assemblywo­man fired back on Friday by accusing Hizzoner of trying to “hide” behind Trump’s unpopulari­ty in the city.

“The mayor has a lousy record, [so] of course he’s going to try to tie me to [a] guy who has a [poor] approval rating,” said Malliotaki­s, following a Manhattan press conference where she ripped de Blasio for refusing to have the city pay half of the $836 million in emergency funding the Metropolit­an Transporta­tion Authority is seeking to repair its dilapidate­d system.

“I’m not Donald Trump. I’m Nicole Malliotaki­s. I have my own ideas. I have my own views,” she said.

Malliotaki­s actually endorsed US Sen. Marco Rubio in the 2016 presiden- tial primaries. She said she voted for Trump only after Rubio dropped out.

“As much as the mayor is tryingng to hide behind Donald Trump, this election is not about Donald Trump,” Malliotaki­s added. “This . . . is about Bill de Blasio and his inability to addresss the quality-of-life issue, his inability to manage taxpayer money properly, his inability to fix the various crises — homelessne­ss, transit — that are plaguing our city.

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