A new Siena College poll finds that President Joe Biden’s approval ratings have reached historic lows in blue New York, but that he still narrowly leads former President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race.
Siena College pollster Steve Greenberg says half of all registered voters in New York are democrats, and just under one quarter are Republicans. No GOP presidential candidate has won the state since the re election of Ronald Reagan nearly 40 years ago. Nevertheless, Biden’s numbers are falling.
“What we see right now is Joe Biden has the worst favorability rating he's ever had in a Siena poll,” Greenberg said. "Forty-five percent of voters view Joe Biden favorably 52 percent unfavorably.”
Greenberg says Biden’s job approval rating is also at an all time low. Forty-six percent approve of the job he’s doing in office, while 51 percent disapprove.
“And when we asked Democrats, ‘do you want to see Joe Biden be your party's nominee for president next year? Or would you prefer another candidate’, only 41percent of Democrats say they want to see Biden as their nominee,” said Greenberg. "Fifty-two percent, a majority of Democrats, say they would like to see a candidate other than Biden.”
Biden still is ahead of Trump by 9 points (46 percent to 37 percent). But when the poll added two independent candidates, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Cornell West, Bidens lead is just 7 points.
Greenberg says more alarming news for democrats: Only 25 percent of New Yorkers think the country's going in the right direction, while 65 percent say it’s going in the wrong direction.
New Yorkers remain concerned about the influx of migrants to the state, and say the flow of migrants needs to be slowed. 59 percent believe crime remains a serious problem, and over 50 percent support aid to Ukraine and Israel in their military struggles.
Governor Hochul’s job approval and favorability numbers remain stagnant, with only 40 percent viewing her positively, and just 45 percent saying she’s doing a good job in office. Greenberg says that’s not a good trend.
“In two years as governor, Hochul has never had 50 percent of the voters in the state say they view her favorably,” he said. “ That's a problem for her.”
Hochul still has time to turn things around. The next election for governor in New York is not until 2026.
