March 30, 2020 — New York City, NY — Governor Andrew Cuomo delivers a Coronavirus Press briefing at Jacob Javits Convention Center.
New Yorkers are voicing strong support for Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s handling of the COVID-19 outbreak. A new poll of registered voters from the Siena Research Institute measuring New Yorkers’ opinions on how government officials are handling the COVID-19 pandemic shows that 87 percent of New Yorkers approve of Gov. Cuomo’s response to the coronavirus.
Cuomo’s favorability rating jumped to 71 percent, which is a huge jump from the 44 percent he had received in February.
Meanwhile, 92 percent of New Yorkers say they’re very (73 percent) or somewhat (19 percent) concerned about the pandemic, and 79 percent say they are very (42 percent) or somewhat (37 percent) concerned about getting the coronavirus themselves. Nearly one-third of voters, 31 percent, say they know someone who tested positive. Pollsters surveyed 566 registered New York voters between March 22 and March 26.
Eighty-seven percent of respondents approve of how Cuomo has addressed the problem by closing non-essential businesses, enforcing social distancing guidelines, and increasing hospital capacity. Ninety-five percent of registered Democratic voters in New York and 70 percent of registered Republicans are happy with Cuomo’s response to the pandemic.
“Voters say New York State government is doing everything it can to protect the health of New Yorkers,” Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg said. “However, 53 percent say the federal government is not doing all it can to protect Americans’ health.”
The Siena poll — which has a margin of error of 4.5 percentage points — shows the majority of New Yorkers disapprove of President Trump’s and Vice President Mike Pence’s response to the coronavirus, with both receiving a 41 percent approval rating. Trump gets a 56 percent disapproval rating on his handling of the situation and Pence gets a 47 percent disapproval.
By a 63-24 percent margin, New York voters do not believe the federal government is doing enough to help small local business owners who are or will be greatly affected by the COVID-19 crisis.
Sixty-three percent of registered voters say that the federal government is not doing enough to help Americans protect themselves or help them financially. Congress only just recently passed the $2 trillion dollars economic relief package that would give most single Americans who make less than $75,000 annually, a one-time disbursement check up to $1,200.
Fifty-nine percent of voters believe that the federal government is not doing enough to meet the financial needs of the average American. Fifty-three percent of New Yorkers say they plan to use the stimulus checks from the federal government for immediate personal or family needs. Twenty-four percent say they will save it for future needs, while 14 percent intend to donate the money they receive.
“Half of New Yorkers, including two-thirds of New York City voters and nearly two-thirds of voters of color, need the federal payment they will receive under the law passed last week for immediate personal and family needs,” Greenberg said.
