Gov. Hochul Seeing Positive Support From New Yorkers: Marist Poll

NEW YORK — Fifty days into her tenure as the female governor of New York, Kathy Hochul is seeing positive support from state residents.

A poll from the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, released Tuesday, found the governor is rated favorably by 55 percent of state residents. Thirty percent had an unfavorable opinion.

Her approval rating is 49 percent, with 31 percent disapproving.

The downside, however, is that one in five — or 20 percent — of New Yorkers said they were unsure about the job she's doing, according to the Marist Poll.

Hochul's approval rating is almost identical across all three regions of the state: NYC, 49 percent; NYC's suburban counties, 48 percent, and upstate, 49 percent.

Looking ahead to 2022 and the gubernatorial election, Hochul has the highest favorable rating among possible competitors: Hochul, 44 percent; Attorney General Letitia James, 28 percent, and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, 15 percent.

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, according to the Marist Poll, has an upside-down favorable/unfavorable rating.

Only 42 percent of New York Democrats have a favorable view of him, while 53 percent have an unfavorable one.

Lee M. Miringoff, director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, said Hochul is doing well among New Yorkers in terms of her performance in office and is the frontrunner among Democrats in her primary prospects for the nomination.

"Andrew Cuomo needs to substantially redefine voters' perceptions of him if he wants to run for governor again," he said.

The poll found 47 percent of New Yorkers approve of the job Hochul is doing on the economy, and 55 percent give her handling of the coronavirus pandemic a thumbs up.

However, the governor's approval rating is at odds with what New Yorkers think about the current direction of the state. Thirty-nine percent feel the state is going in the right direction, while 54 percent said it's going in the wrong direction.

Miringoff pointed out that this finding was the lowest "right direction" number, other than in August when it was 35 percent, since an Oct. 30, 2010, Marist Poll found only 18 percent thought the state was headed in the right direction. The 2010 poll was released the week before Cuomo was elected to his first term as governor.

This Marist Poll was a survey of 822 adults residing in New York and was conducted Oct. 4 through Oct. 7. The margin of error is ±4.8 percentage points.

More information about this Marist Poll can be found here.