What to Know
- The exclusive NBC 4 New York/Marist Poll found de Blasio would crush potential Republican opponents by more than 40 points
- Only 39 percent of poll respondents rated the mayor's performance as excellent or good, but the approval rating didn't seem to affect votes
- Whether in a nine-way race or a tighter three-way Democratic contest, De Blasio still manages to knock out everyone in 1st round, poll says
Mayor de Blasio has enough support among Democrats to win a primary election outright, and would crush potential Republican oppponents in a general election by more than 40 points, according to a new NBC 4 New York/Marist Poll.
He would win those commanding victories, the poll found, despite just 39 percent of voters rating the mayor's performance as excellent or good.
The tepid approval rating seemed to matter little either way. Whether in a nine-way race or a tighter three-way Democratic contest, de Blasio still manages to knock out everyone in the first round, including potential opponents like Comptroller Scott Stringer and Public Advocate Letitia James.
"Even in a crowded field, Mayor de Blasio would reach 40 percent in a Democratic primary and avoid a runoff," said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, in a statement Wednesday. "None of his potential Democratic challengers has double-digit support."
In a general election, the results are much the same. The poll found de Blasio would win by at least 45 points against any of four Republicans: businessman and radio host John Catsimatidis, City Councilmember Eric Ulrich, real estate investor Paul Massey and Rev. Michael Faulkner.
The numbers weren't moved much by the mayor's prospective legal troubles. De Blasio met with federal prosecutors last week in connection with their investigation into whether he and his aides traded government favors for donations.
Local
In the NBC 4 New York/Marist Poll, half of respondents said the mayor did something wrong, including 17 percent who said he did something illegal. But there again, 51 percent of voters said it would not matter much to them -- or at all -- if one of the mayor's aides were indicted.
The telephone survey of adults ages 18 and up, speaking either English or Spanish, was conducted Feb. 21 to Feb 27. Marist surveyed 888 adults, of whom 636 were registered voters. The margin of error for that group was 3.9 percentage points.
