WASHINGTON — New Yorkers are among the most generous donors to a legal defense fund set up to fight President Obama’s challenge to Arizona’s crackdown on illegal immigrants.

Nearly 300 New Yorkers have ponied up $11,956 online to the fund that this week had raised almost $700,000, according to numbers compiled by the Arizona Governor’s Office.

Donors from only five other states have given more to the effort than New Yorkers. And four of the five states that gave more are on the southern border.

“It’s just the right thing to do,” said Robert Meigs, of upstate Ontario, who donated $100.

He and his wife learned about the legal relief fund on Facebook, at http://www.keepazsafe.com, and chipped in online.

“The federal government isn’t doing their job, and [Arizona] is just trying to enforce the laws,” said Meigs, 66, who works as a sales assistant at Staples.

Steven Padin, a cop from Buffalo, donated $10 as a “symbolic” gesture.

“I feel very strongly about the security of this country,” he said.

Like many of those giving to the fund, Padin is a strong proponent of legal immigration.

Ironically, he is Hispanic, with Puerto Rican roots.

But he simply cannot understand why the federal government does not secure the borders.

Every year, the 25-year veteran of the Buffalo Police Department travels to Mexico and other countries south of the border on a volunteer goodwill mission to teach police tactics.

On one of his trips, he got to know a man who wants to come to America legally.

“He was an honest person, hardworking. He wants to come here the honest route,” Padin said.

But his application is stuck at the end of a very long line, while millions illegally pour over the border.

“A lot of them are just taking advantage of the extremely liberal hand some of the governments here have, such as New York,” Padin said.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer set up the legal defense fund after signing into law her state’s new immigration legislation.

That law would essentially direct state officers to begin enforcing the federal immigration laws by questioning those they stop about their status, a move that Arizonans say is a reaction to lax federal enforcement.

It wasn’t until last week, when Obama’s Justice Department launched a lawsuit against the Arizona law, that the money really began pouring in.

More than $300,000 flowed in during the 48-hour period after Obama’s lawsuit was filed.

Overall, donations have come from more than 9,000 contributors, giving anywhere from $1 to $2,000.

churt@nypost.com

