Residents of deep-blue New York view President Donald Trump more favorably than Democratic governor Kathy Hochul, who struggles with low approval ratings and bleak reelection prospects, according to a poll released Monday.
Trump’s favorability in the Empire State has risen to 41 percent, up from 37 percent in December, while just 39 percent of New York voters rate Hochul favorably, according to the Siena College poll. The poll found that only 31 percent of New Yorkers would vote to reelect Hochul, with 57 percent saying they would vote for “someone else.”
Hochul has faced widespread criticism in recent months for her mixed messages on congestion pricing, which was slated to go into effect in June 2024 until she unexpectedly blocked it. She started the program last month, charging drivers $9 to enter Midtown Manhattan. The governor, who is eyeing a reelection bid next year, has not received a positive favorability rating among New York voters in the survey since January 2024. She also holds a negative 44-48 percent job approval rating, with only 22 percent saying that Hochul’s administration has improved New York’s fiscal condition.
Trump was a lifelong New Yorker until he made his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida his primary residence in 2019.
“Governor Hochul’s favorability and job approval ratings continue to languish in negative territory,” Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg said, noting that 41 percent of Democrats prefer another candidate as their next governor.
Trump’s job approval rating stands at 46-51 percent, according to the Monday poll. The president lost New York by 12.6 percentage points in the 2024 election, down from 23.1 points in 2020 and 22.6 points in 2016.
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