New York City voters disapprove of the job Mayor Bill de Blasio is doing by 51 to 42 percent, close to his lowest-ever 52 percent disapproval rating recorded in May.
Fifty percent of the voters say he does not deserve reelection in 2017, according to a Quinnipiac University poll of 1,300 registered voters released Tuesday.
But Mayor de Blasio tops two potential challengers, City Comptroller Scott Stringer or former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in Democratic primary and general election matchups, the independent Quinnipiac University Poll finds.
Hypothetical election results show:
- de Blasio gets 43 percent in a Democratic primary, with 19 percent for Quinn and 16 percent for Stringer;
- de Blasio tops Stringer 45-to-32 percent in a head-to-head general election matchup, with Stringer running as an independent;
- de Blasio leads Quinn 43-to-33 percent in a two-way general election matchup, with Quinn running as an independent.
There is a wide racial gap in each matchup as black voters back the mayor by large margins, while white voters back Stringer or Quinn.
“For a mayor going into an election year, this is a disturbing poll. Half of New Yorkers say Mayor Bill de Blasio does not deserve reelection,” said Quinnipiac University Poll Assistant Director Maurice Carroll. “The plus for Mayor de Blasio is in the political truism that you can’t beat somebody with nobody. So far neither City Comptroller Scott Stringer nor former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn shows much political strength.
“The racial divisions that have marked the mayor’s first term are as strong as ever,” Carroll added. “de Blasio is exceptionally strong among black voters; exceptionally weak among white voters.”
Meanwhile, 60 percent of New York City voters approve of the job Andrew Cuomo is doing as governor, down from a January poll, but up from the most recent Quinnipiac poll in May..
As for their policy disagreements often played out in the media, Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio have “honest disagreements,” say 46 percent of New York City voters, while 40 percent say they are involved in a “personal feud.”
Whichever it is, 42 percent of city voters agree more with Cuomo, while 33 percent agree more with de Blasio.
And 60 percent of voters say the conflict hurts New York City.
“How about that edginess the media keeps reporting about between de Blasio and Cuomo? Is it a personal feud or just an honest difference of opinion? Voters are split. But, overall, they think the governor is doing a good job and the mayor isn’t,” Carroll said.
Voters say 52-to-41 percent that de Blasio does not have strong leadership qualities, but 51-to-44 percent that he does understand their problems. Voters say 49-to-40 percent that the mayor is honest and trustworthy.
From July 21 to July 28, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,310 New York City voters, with a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points. The survey includes 845 Democrats, with a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points among that sample. Live interviewers called land lines and cell phones.
