Just over a third of New Yorkers say Democratic governor Kathy Hochul should serve another term, with a majority saying they want someone else, according to a poll published Tuesday.
Only 36 percent of New York voters said they support Hochul’s bid for a second four-year term, while 55 percent prefer a different candidate, the Siena College poll shows. The numbers mark a 10-point slide from last month, when 39 percent backed the governor for reelection and 48 percent said they wanted someone else. Hochul announced last July that she is running for reelection.
The poll comes as Republicans have gained ground in deep-blue New York. A Siena poll earlier this year found that New Yorkers viewed President Donald Trump more favorably than Hochul, who has faced low approval ratings since 2021, when she took over for disgraced former governor Andrew Cuomo (D.). In the 2024 election, Trump lost the Empire State by only 12.6 percentage points, compared with 23.1 points in 2020 and 22.6 points in 2016.
While Trump’s favorability numbers in New York have dipped back below Hochul’s, the ratings differ by only 6 points, the Tuesday poll found, with the president’s at 38 percent and the governor’s at 44 percent.
According to the Tuesday poll, 64 percent of independents and 82 percent of Republicans prefer a different governor. Even among Democrats, just 51 percent said they support Hochul, while 38 percent want someone else.
While no Republican has officially entered New York’s 2026 gubernatorial race, the poll found Rep. Elise Stefanik leading the GOP primary field, with 35 percent support. Rep. Mike Lawler follows with 22 percent, with Nassau County executive Bruce Blakeman at 11 percent.
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