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| PHOTO: MIKE GROLL/ASSOCIATED PRESS |
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s approval rating fell to 41% in a Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday, and 52% of voters who responded to the survey said he didn’t deserve re-election next year.
In January, the Quinnipiac poll showed Mr. de Blasio with a 50% approval rating for the job he was doing as mayor. His trustworthy rating also dropped from 60% in January to 43% now.
Mr. de Blasio, now confronts greater electoral headwinds as he faces federal and state investigations into his administration and his political fundraising.
Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a political foe of Mr. de Blasio, has a 56% approval rating in New York City, according to the poll.
The numbers were low across the board for City Hall. Voters don’t approve of how Mr. de Blasio is handling the public schools, the budget or crime, according to the poll, with his approval rating below 40% on those topics.
Karen Hinton, a spokeswoman for Mr. de Blasio, cited the mayor’s progress in expanding universal prekindergarten and affordable housing and said crime edged down over 5% on his watch.
“Heading into his re-election year, Mayor Bill de Blasio is not in good political shape,” said Mickey Carroll, the assistant director for the poll. “Black voters are the only group keeping Mr. de Blasio afloat.”
Yet, it remains unclear how easy it might be to defeat Mr. de Blasio. Among Democrats, Mr. de Blasio’s approval rating is 58%, down from 63% in January. The poll also tests him against potential Democratic challengers running as independents. Mr. de Blasio wins 37% to 36% against Comptroller Scott Stringer, 35% to 34% over Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and 37% to 32% over Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. None of the men has declared as candidates for 2017.
Among black voters, Mr. de Blasio’s approval rating is 58%, down from 77% in January, while his approval rating with white voters is 27%.
Kenneth Sherrill, a professor emeritus of political science at Hunter College, said the numbers are “a warning signal” that the mayor needs to make changes. "In some ways he might seem to be acting as someone with something to hide,” Mr. Sherrill said.