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Should de Blasio run for president? NYC voters say no in new poll

Mayor Bill de Blasio should not run for president, according to New Yorkers polled by Quinnipiac University.
Mayor Bill de Blasio should not run for president, according to New Yorkers polled by Quinnipiac University. Photo Credit: Corey Sipkin

An overwhelming majority of New York City voters do not think Mayor Bill de Blasio should throw his hat into the 2020 presidential race, according to a new poll.

The Quinnipiac University Poll released on Wednesday found that 76 percent of city residents who were surveyed do not believe de Blasio should run for president, compared with 18 percent who do. This opinion was shared across every listed party, race, gender, borough and age group.

“Mayor Bill de Blasio’s flirtation with a 2020 White House bid is prompting a rare moment of unity among New Yorkers. Three-quarters of them say, ‘Mr. Mayor: Don’t do it,’ “ polling analyst Mary Snow said in a statement.

The mayor has openly toyed with running for president for several months. He’s traveled to several key early voting states, including Iowa and South Carolina, and has addressed speculation over a bid for the White House, telling “Meet The Press” host Chuck Todd in February that he had “not ruled it out.”

New Yorkers aren’t especially pleased with how de Blasio is doing as mayor of the city, either. Those polled by Quinnipiac gave him a 42 percent favorable and 44 percent unfavorable job rating.

Support for the mayor varies widely by race as well as borough. While de Blasio’s job approval rating sits at 66-23 percent among black voters; Hispanic voters were split 40-40, and whites disapprove by 58 percent to 31 percent. Staten Islanders are most critical of the mayor (30-64 percent), with Bronx residents the most supportive (50-38 percent).

Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,077 New York City voters through phone interviews from March 27 to April 1, with a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points.