NEW YORK (WCBS 880) -- Gov. Kathy Hochul has kept her lead on the remainder of the Democratic field for governor, doubling her next closest opponent, according to a new Siena College poll released Tuesday.
Among New York Democrats polled, 36% favor Hochul. State Attorney General Letitia James is second with 18%, while Public Advocate Jumaane Williams got 10%, and Rep. Tom Suozzi and Mayor Bill de Blasio garnered 6% each.
The poll found that 24% are either undecided or are backing another candidate.
Hochul’s favorability rating among registered New York voters held firm in November — with a 42%-26% figure in November, compared to 42%-26% in October. But the governor’s job performance rating remains in the negative, at 42%-46%.
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Among Hochul’s competitors for a full term, James has a 40%-25% favorability, while de Blasio’s is deep in the red — 28%-55%.
Hochul, James, Suozzi and Williams have publicly announced their intention to run for governor, while de Blasio has hinted at running, but hasn’t made an official announcement.
Hochul and James have nearly identical favorability ratings among Democratic voters, the poll found.
“With all the candidates trying to introduce themselves to voters and stand out among a growing field, Hochul has the advantage of incumbency and the largest bully pulpit and it appears to be helping her in this early going,” said Siena college pollster Steven Greenberg. “The first financial filings in the race will come next month, the state convention the following month and the primary in just 28 weeks.”
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New York voters have two issues at the top of mind — creating economic opportunity and fighting crime, with both showing up on the polls of 26% of respondents. Managing the pandemic came up third.
And for the first time since before the pandemic, the poll found fewer New Yorkers think the state is on the right track (41%) than the wrong track (45%).
The Siena poll was taken from Nov. 29 through Dec. 3 and included 785 New york registered voters, including 399 Democrats. It had a margin of error of 4%.