Eric Adams’ approval rating dropped to a meager 28% in a Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday — which is the lowest ever recorded for a New York City mayor by the university since they began querying Big Apple voters a quarter century ago.
The mayor’s anemic support amid a massive migrant crisis and federal campaign probe is a nine-point drop from the already low 37% he racked up in February and is three points lower than the poll’s previous low of 31% recorded by former Mayor Mike Bloomberg in 2003.
The survey of registered NYC voters also found that nearly two-thirds — 58% — of voters disapproved of Adams’ performance.
“There is a real sense of worry and voters are not happy. There’s no good news for Mayor Adams in this poll. Not only are voters giving him poor grades on the job he’s doing at City Hall, their views on his character have dimmed,” said assistant director Mary Snow of the Quinnipiac College Poll, which first started polling New York mayor’s approval in 1996.
“As the city faces across the board budget cuts while dealing with a migrant crisis, headlines about a federal investigation into the mayor’s 2021 campaign and an accusation of sexual assault leveled against him from 30 years ago are taking a toll.”
The mayor’s only positive rating came from Black voters, with 48% approving of the job he’s doing compared to 38% who gave thumbs down.
Only 35% of fellow Democrats overall said he’s doing a good job, while 49% disapproved.
Adams was underwater with voters on major bread-and-butter issues:
- 60% disapprove his handling of crime while only 33 percent approve — a troubling sign entering the mid-term of his mayoralty and making public safety the major priority in his successful bid for City Hall in 2021
- 66% disapproved of his handling of the migrant crisis and 72% gave thumbs down of his of tackling homelessness.
- 53% disapprove of his handling of public schools, while 31% approve.
Meanwhile, just 40% said he has strong leadership qualities and 56% said he does not understand their problems.
Only a third of voters said he is honest and trustworthy, while 54% said he was not.
Asked about the federal investigation into whether foreign money was funneled into his mayoral campaign, 52% said Adams did something illegal or unethical, while 20% said he did not do anything wrong, with the rest undecided.
He has not been accused of a crime and denies wrongdoing.
Voters are split on whether Adams is being truthful in his denial of a sexual assault accusation made by a woman in a lawsuit who claimed he abused her thirty years ago.
Adams’ is being dogged by his proposed budget and the migrant crisis, the poll found.
Eighty-three percent are somewhat or very concerned that the across-the-budget cuts that would impact police, schools, sanitation and social services will affect their daily lives.
A rep for Adams ripped the poll.
“Incorrect polls come out every day, but the real numbers cannot be questioned: crime is down, jobs are up, and we continue to deliver billions of dollars into the pockets of working people,” said Adams spokesman Fabien Levy.
“There will always be more work to do, but there is no question that this city is in a better place under Mayor Adams’ leadership.”
Other recent polls by Marist College and others also reported a nose-dive in his public approval, with one GOP survey claiming that fallen former Gov. Andrew Cuomo would trounce him by 20 points in a Democratic primary for mayor in 2025.
Quinnipiac surveyed 1,297 New York City registered voters from November 30th to December 4th.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.
