Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who’s running as an independent for mayor of New York City, has cut Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani’s lead in half, according to a new poll released one week before the general election.
In the latest Suffolk University poll, conducted over the last four days, Mamdani leads Cuomo by 10 points — 44 percent to 34 percent — with Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa following with 11 percent.
In Suffolk’s poll last month, Mamdani was 20 points ahead of Cuomo — 45 percent to 25 percent — followed by Sliwa with 9 percent, and incumbent New York City Mayor Eric Adams with 8 percent.
Today, 7 percent of respondents say they’re undecided, down from 9 percent last month.
Since last month’s poll, Adams has suspended his independent reelection bid and endorsed Cuomo.
Two percent of respondents say in the latest survey that they plan on voting for Adams, whose name will still appear on the ballot. But when told Adams has since suspended his campaign, fewer than a quarter still say they still plan on filling in the circle next to his name.
Among Sliwa voters, Cuomo is more popular than Mamdani. Asked for their second choice, 36 percent pick the former governor while only 2 percent back the race’s frontrunner.
“There is one person in New York City whose voters could have an outsized impact on the outcome,” David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, said in a statement.
“That person isn’t Mayor Eric Adams, Representative Hakeem Jeffries, Senator Chuck Schumer, or any New York billionaire. It’s Republican Curtis Sliwa, whose voters hold the 11% blocking Cuomo from winning the race,” he continued, pointing to Sliwa voters’ second candidate preferences.
Cuomo’s gains over the last month are most evident with Hispanic and independent voters.
Cuomo leads Mamdani by 1 point among Hispanic voters, after trailing Mamdani among the demographic by 30 points last month.
Independent voters now also favor Cuomo, who leads the bloc by 10 points, after last month favoring Mamdani by 18 points.
The survey included 500 likely New York City general election voters and was conducted on Oct. 23-26. The margin of error is 4.4 percentage points.
