Andy support ‘half’ hearted
ALBANY — Gov. Cuomo leads Cynthia Nixon in the Democratic gubernatorial primary but barely cracks 50%, according to a poll released Wednesday.
The two-term incumbent Democratic governor leads the “Sex and the City” actress 50% to 28% among registered Democrats, with 22% undecided, the Quinnipiac University poll shows.
In New York City, which makes up a big chunk of the Democratic primary electorate, Cuomo leads Nixon, 53% to 28%. But she actually leads him 49% to 31% among self-described very liberal voters.
The poll also shows Nixon (photo left) would be a drain on the governor in the general election if he wins the primary but she stays on the ballot as the progressive Working Families Party candidate.
In a three-way matchup, Cuomo (photo right) would garner 40% of the vote, compared with 23% for likely Republican candidate Marcus Molinaro, the Dutchess County executive, and 20% for Nixon, the poll found.
Nixon entered the race about six weeks ago. The primary is scheduled for Sept. 13.
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22% undecided 20% undecided
Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll, said Nixon is “a nuisance to Gov. Andrew Cuomo as he seeks a third term, but at this stage she is not running strong enough to make either the Democratic primary or general election challenge successful.”
Just 35% of registered Democrats in New York have a favorable opinion of Nixon, while 15% view her unfavorably. But 48% of Dems say they haven’t heard enough about her to form an opinion. Among voters overall, 26% view Nixon favorably, 21% unfavorably, and 52% had no opinion.
Cuomo is viewed favorably by 71% of Democrats, but 49% of New Yorkers overall, the poll found. Just 21% of Dems have an unfavorable opinion of him, compared with 41% of overall New Yorkers.
Cuomo faced a primary from the left four years ago when littleknown and underfunded Fordham law Prof. Zephyr Teachout got a surprising 33.5% of the vote. Cuomo scored 63%.
Separately Wednesday, Nixon scored a win over Cuomo as a leading national progressive group endorsed her candidacy.
Democracy for America, founded by former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, dubbed Nixon “the real progressive in the race for governor of New York.”
The group’s executive director, Charles Chamberlain, said Cuomo “only acts like a progressive when he’s being challenged by powerful progressive women capable of defeating him.”
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