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De Blasio maintains wide lead in latest poll

poll
THE COURIER/File photos

The newest Quinnipiac University poll shows Democrat Bill de Blasio still has a commanding lead over his Republican opponent Joe Lhota in the mayor’s race.

The poll found that De Blasio tops Lhota 68 to 24 percent among likely voters. Independence candidate Adolfo Carrion received 2 percent in the survey.

Lhota improved slightly since the last Quinnipiac University poll, released on October 3, which showed de Blasio with a 71 to 21 percent lead over him.

But with only two weeks to go until Election Day, the poll also found that only 5 percent of likely voters are still undecided. Eight percent of voters who named a candidate said there’s a “good chance” they will change their mind by November 5.

“The good news for Public Advocate Bill de Blasio is that he probably can start drafting is inauguration speech,” said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling  Institute.

“The bad news is that New York City voters’ priority for the next mayor is – you guessed it – jobs, something over which a mayor has very little control. The next priority is education and if he can succeed where so many have not, they can name a school after him.”

According to the poll, released Monday, 32 percent of likely voters said creating jobs is the top priority for the next mayor, followed by education at 24 percent, keeping crime rates low at 20 percent and reducing the gap between the rich and poor at 18 percent.

The poll, conducted from October 16 to 20, surveyed 973 likely voters and had a margin of error of plus and minus 3.1 percentage points.

On October 15, de Blasio and Lhota faced each other in their first general election mayoral debate. The following day, Lhota released a new campaign ad highlighting his Democratic opponent’s “weak positions on crime.”

 

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