Poll: N.Y. Voters Remain Undecided on Gillibrand

Nearly two-in-five New York voters aren't sure whether they will vote for or against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., in a new Marist College poll released Wednesday night, but, if recent history is any guide, she remains favored for reelection.

According to the poll, conducted for the Time Warner-owned cable news channels NY1 and YNN, 39 percent of Empire State voters say they definitely plan to vote for Gillibrand for reelection, while 22 percent definitely plan to vote against her. Thirty-nine percent of voters say they are undecided, including a third of Democratic voters.

Asked to rate the job Gillibrand is doing in office, 41 percent of voters describe it as "excellent" or "good," while 43 percent say she is doing a "fair" or "poor" job. While those numbers seem low in such a strong Democratic state, some context is in order: The percentage that describes her job performance as "poor" is just 11 percent, meaning that 32 percent say she is doing a "fair" job.

And some history: Just before the 2010 special election -- when she defeated former Rep. Joe DioGuardi, R-N.Y., by a whopping 28 points -- just 36 percent described Gillibrand's job performance as "excellent" or "good," and 48 percent chose "fair" or "poor."

Gillibrand will also have President Obama at the top of the ticket to bolster her candidacy. The poll shows Obama leading former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney by 24 points, and his leads over businessman Herman Cain and Texas Gov. Rick Perry are greater than 30 points.

The NY1-YNN/Marist poll was conducted Oct. 25-27, surveying 855 registered voters. The margin of error is +/- 3.4 percent.

Leave A Comment
The National Journal Group has the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the comments and to remove any materials it deems inappropriate.
Comments powered by Disqus
Follow National Journal
About

Staff


Reid Wilson, Editor-in-Chief
Steve Shepard, Executive Editor
Julie Sobel, Editor
Kevin Brennan, Deputy Editor


Disclaimer


On Call editors reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments. The Hotline, National Journal Group, Inc. and Atlantic Media Company are not responsible for the content of the comments that remain.