 [FoxNews] Law enforcement officers in areas primarily run by Democrats continue to flock to red states for job security, better pay and bosses who will back them up, according to one police leader.
Joe Gamaldi is the national vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP). He is an active lieutenant with the Houston Police Department, and he said police in blue cities are tired of facing hostility from local leaders.
"What we've seen is really a mass exodus of police officers leaving far-left cities for basically greener pastures," he told Fox News Digital.
"Because, ultimately, people want to feel appreciated for what they do, and when you have a boss — in this case, mayors or city councils, who regularly call you a piece of crap to the public — why would anyone stay?"
Florida is one example of a Republican-led state that has benefited from the mass departures.
According to a 2024 statement from former Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, the state welcomed 5,000 law enforcement recruits between 2022 and last year, and 1,200 of them came from out of state.
"Florida is the most pro-law enforcement state in the nation because we back our blue," Moody said at the time. "We’ve been spreading the word about all the great incentives to join our ranks, and individuals like the new Sarasota recruits have answered the call, leaving behind places where their service was not as appreciated as it is here."
She said she was "as inspired as ever to continue doing all we can to show our support to those who bravely protect and serve" after seeing the influx of police officers into the state.
Gamaldi said officers are also moving to cities that may lean blue but are in red states and still have the support of elected leadership and the community, adding officers are "voting with their feet."
"We're also seeing it [in] Texas in Houston, which is a city that leans a little blue, but they have been supportive of police officers," he said. "The mayor there has given a massive raise to police officers. You're seeing officers go there. You're seeing officers go to Dallas. So, you're seeing all these communities, and there's one common thread. It's ‘We support police officers.'"
Gamaldi emphasized that the trend began after the 2020 defund the police movement and said, in many cities, law enforcement officers are afraid to do their jobs in "critical incident" situations, even when they do them by the book.
"I think you can look no further than Seattle, Portland, Chicago [and] New York," he said. "All of these cities have basically told their police officers, 'We don't support you. We're not gonna be there for you when you need us. We're gonna try to defund you when given the opportunity.'
"I mean, my goodness, right now, one of the mayoral candidates for New York has actively said he wants to defund and dismantle the police department," Gamaldi said, referring to socialist Zohran Mamdani, who has been open with his anti-police rhetoric.
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