New York Gov. Kathy Hochul leads her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, by only 8 percentage points in a hypothetical Democratic primary matchup, according to a Siena College Research Institute poll released on Monday.
Hochul would receive 38% of the vote and Cuomo 30%. In third place is Rep. Tom Suozzi with 10%, followed by New York City public advocate Jumaane Williams with 7%.
When asked only about the candidates who have actually entered the race, Hochul had a sizable lead with 52% of the vote, compared to Williams at 12% and Suozzi at 11%.
Other results from the survey indicate:
- Only 33% of registered Democrats want Cuomo to run in the primary, and only 32% thought he did not sexually harass multiple women, suggesting that his current 30% support might be near his ceiling.
- Cuomo was viewed favorably by only 32% of all registered voters and unfavorably by 60%, meaning his image did not improve despite a multimillion dollar ad campaign launched a month ago designed to do so. In February, the former governor’s favorability was 33%, while 60% viewed him unfavorably.
- Hochul was viewed favorably by 45% of registered voters, making it the sixth straight poll since she took office last August in which that number has been between 42% and 46%.
- A full 70% of respondents backed a temporary suspension of New York’s gas tax, while 24% opposed the idea as lawmakers consider relief at the pump as part of the state budget for the fiscal year that begins April 1.
- Only 30% of respondents said the limits placed on the use of cash bail in 2019 have been "good for New York," compared to 56% who said they were "bad." That compares to 37% saying they were good and 49% saying they were bad in January 2020, and 55% saying they were good and 38% saying they were bad in April 2019.
"Nearly two-thirds of New Yorkers — including at least 60% of Republicans, independents, voters from every region, and white and Latino voters, as well as majorities of Democratic and Black voters — say the bail law has resulted in an increase in crime," Siena spokesperson Steve Greenberg said in a statement.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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