Newark Poll Results: Baraka For Governor, Homelessness, Lead Water

NEWARK, NJ — New Jersey’s largest city is showing heavy support for Newark Mayor Ras Baraka as the state’s next governor. But many of its residents aren’t thrilled with the current state of affairs in the Brick City, a recent poll from Fairleigh Dickinson University says.

On Wednesday, Fairleigh Dickinson released the results of a new poll, which surveyed 1,120 Newark residents between April 10 and May 8. Read the full poll and learn about its methodology here.

Participants were asked to weigh in on Baraka’s chances at being elected governor in 2025. They were also asked to give their opinions about two pressing issues in the city: homelessness and Newark’s battle against lead water contamination.

Here’s what they said, according to researchers at Fairleigh Dickinson.

BARAKA FOR GOVERNOR

Baraka announced that he is running for New Jersey governor in 2025 earlier this year. He released a campaign video on Tuesday, which can be viewed online here.

During his tenure as Newark mayor, the former teacher has rolled out several efforts to tackle several hot-button issues in the city, such as a lack of housing, income inequality, education gaps and policing reform. And if his state of the city address is any indication, Baraka’s blueprint for rebuilding Newark may be the same he’d put into action if elected as governor.

“I know as we reimagine this city – I know we can reimagine this state,” the mayor urged.

• See Related: Baraka Says He Will Lift 'Working People' If Elected As NJ Governor
• See Related: Once Forgotten, Newark Is On The Rise, Mayor Says

Other gubernatorial candidates who have officially thrown their hats into the ring to replace Phil Murphy in 2025 include Steve Fulop and Steve Sweeney, who are running as Democrats. Republican candidates include Jon Bramnick, Robert Canfield, Jack Ciattarelli, Edward Durr and Hans Herberg. Meanwhile, Gerardo Cedrone is running as an independent.

Pundits have speculated that there may be even more potential candidates that haven’t officially launched campaigns yet, including U.S. Reps. Mikie Sherrill and Josh Gottheimer – who were both included in the Fairleigh Dickinson poll.

Here’s what the poll found, researchers said:

DEMOCRATIC VOTE – “Overall, 51 percent of Democrats (and independents who say that the lean towards the Democratic Party) in Newark say that they plan to back Baraka in next year’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, putting him well ahead of the other listed candidates. Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop and Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill of the nearby 11th District, are in the second tier, with about 5 percent support each. Congressman Josh Gottheimer and former State Senator Steve Sweeney each have minimal support. Neither Gottheimer nor Sherrill have announced if they will run, and there are several others who may announce a candidacy before next year’s race. A large portion of Newark Democrats (36 percent) say that they don’t know who they’ll vote for.”

BARAKA AS GOVERNOR – “Regardless of whether they say that they would vote for him, 47 percent of Newark residents say that Baraka would make a good governor, with only 25 percent saying that he wouldn’t. Black residents of Newark are the most likely to say that Baraka would make a good governor (57 percent), much higher than his numbers among Hispanic residents (38 percent) or members of other racial groups (mostly whites and Asian-Americans, 35 percent).”

“Newark is the biggest city in the state, and that’s a lot of Democratic voters,” said Dan Cassino, the executive director of the poll.

“Having a strong base in Newark is a good place for Baraka to start, but his challenge is going to be extending that support to other primary voters,” added Cassino, a professor of government and politics at Fairleigh Dickinson.

• See Related: Mayor Ras Baraka's Governor Bid: A Path Forward Or An Uphill Battle?

MAYOR APPROVAL RATING

Pollsters also asked Newark residents to give a thumbs-up – or a thumbs-down – to Baraka’s performance as mayor.

Here’s what they found:

“Overall, 47 percent of Newark residents say that they approve of the job Baraka is doing as Mayor, with 23 percent saying that they disapprove, and the remaining 30 percent unsure. This approval number outpaces views of the state of the city: only 36 percent of residents say that Newark has gotten better as a place to live over the past two years, with 25 percent saying that it’s gotten worse. Residents of the North (39 percent) and South Wards (41 percent) are the most likely to say that it’s gotten better, while residents of the East Ward are the most down on the city: 43 percent say that it’s gotten worse, with only 22 percent saying that it’s gotten better.”

“Newark residents aren’t thrilled with the state of the city overall, but they aren’t blaming Baraka,” Cassino said.

HOMELESSNESS

The poll also asked about some specific issues facing the city. One of them? Homelessness.

A majority of residents (53 percent) said there are more homeless people on the streets than in the past, with residents of the East Ward being the most likely (60 percent) to say that numbers had increased. Just 13 percent said that they see fewer homeless people on the streets.

Their opinions come despite figures recently presented by Baraka and other city officials, which claim that Newark is making major headway into the problem.

• See Related: Newark Sees Huge Drop In Unsheltered Homeless Population, State Says
• See Related: Essex County’s Homeless Total Drops, But Still Leads New Jersey (Study)

LEAD IN WATER

Survey respondents were also asked their opinions about the city’s ongoing battle against lead water contamination.

According to pollsters:

“When ingested through water or other means, high levels of lead can cause serious medical problems, including brain damage, especially in children. After authorities found elevated levels of lead in the water at Newark schools in 2016, the city began a program to replace all of the lead water pipes in the city. While the city had declared that the lead pipes had been removed, an audit earlier this year found that some piping had not been replaced. The city blamed a vendor, who they declined to name, for the mistake.”

What are Newark residents currently thinking about the situation? Here’s what the Fairleigh Dickinson poll found:

“Just 10 percent of Newark residents say that the lead piping in the city has been completely removed, with 39 percent saying it’s been ‘mostly’ removed. Twenty percent say that the lead pipes are mostly or completely still in place. A large portion of residents (31 percent) say that they don’t know if the pipes have been removed or didn’t want to answer the question.”

While many Newark residents still seem ambivalent about the city’s progress, the Baraka administration has seen glowing praise from other elected officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris. Read More: VP Returns To Newark, Praises City For Battling Lead Water Contamination

“The fact that fewer than half of residents know about one of Baraka’s major policy successes points to a real problem with getting the word out,” Cassino said. “It doesn’t matter what you do, if people don’t know about it.”

• See Related: Newark Ramps Up Home Inspections As It Probes New Water Woes
• See Related: New Jersey Is Replacing Its Lead Water Pipes – All Of Them

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