Cuomo way up on Nixon in gov race: poll

ALBANY — Gov. Cuomo widened his large lead over Democratic primary challenger Cynthia Nixon, a new poll released Wednesday shows.

With less than two months before the primary, Cuomo leads Nixon by a 59% to 23% margin among registered, not necessarily likely, Democratic voters, the Quinnipiac University poll shows.

Quinnipiac polling analyst Mary Snow referred questions to the pollsters when asked why this late in the political season they surveyed registered voters and not those deemed likely to vote in the primary or general election elections.

Cuomo, according to the poll, has big leads among all gender, education, age, ratio and regional groups.

His lead over Nixon increased from 50%-28% in a May 2 poll.

The two-term incumbent governor also is way ahead in the potential six-candidate general election race, the poll shows. If the general election was today, Cuomo would get 43% on the Democratic line and Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro 23% on the Republican line. Nixon would get 13% on the Working Families Party line, Libertarian Party candidate Larry Sharpe 3%, Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins 2%, and former Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner 1% on the Service America Movement line.

Head to head, Cuomo leads Molinaro by 57% to 31% margin among registered voters.