New Yorkers don’t know enough about governor’s challengers to form an opinion

Voters tell pollsters two-to-one that they want a governor with experience

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo would trounce his Democratic primary challenger Cynthia Nixon by 59-to-23 percent if the election were held today, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll.

Cuomo currently enjoys big leads against Nixon among all gender, education, age, racial and regional groups in the survey.

These latest numbers compare to a 50-to-28 percent Cuomo lead in a May 2 survey by the independent Quinnipiac University poll. Today, the governor leads 58-to-20 percent among Democratic women and 60-to-28 percent among men; 53-to-28 percent among white Democrats and 65-to-18 percent among non-white Democrats.

In a general election matchup:

• Cuomo gets 43 percent on the Democratic line;
• Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro, the Republican, gets 23 percent;
• Nixon, running on the Working Families Party line, gets 13 percent;
• Libertarian Party candidate Larry Sharpe gets 3 percent;
• Green Party Candidate Howie Hawkins gets 2 percent;
• Serve America Movement candidate Stephanie Miner gets 1 percent.

In a one-on-one matchup, Cuomo would top Molinaro by 57-to-31 percent. The gender and racial gaps are more pronounced as men back Cuomo 50-to-38 percent, while women go Democratic 63-to-25 percent. White voters back the governor 49-to-42 percent, as non-white voters back him 73-to-13 percent.

“New Yorkers say 59-to-30 percent they want a gubernatorial candidate with experience in politics over someone new to it,” says Mary Snow, a polling analyst for the Quinnipiac University Poll. “Democrats, non-white voters and women, in particular, lead the charge in that preference.

“A significant percentage of voters say they haven’t heard enough about Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s two main rivals, Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro and Cynthia Nixon, to give them a thumbs up or down on what they think of them,” Snow adds. “That is also helping Gov. Cuomo.”

Among all New York State voters Cuomo gets a 49-to-43 percent job approval rating, compared to a 54-to-39 percent approval in the previous Quinnipiac University poll released on May 2.

All voters give Cuomo a 49-to-38 percent favorability rating. Nixon gets a split 27-to-30 percent favorability, with 40 percent of New Yorkers saying they haven’t heard enough about her to form an opinion. Among the other candidates for governor, the “haven’t heard enough” rate ranges from 66 percent for Molinaro to 90 percent for Hawkins.

From July 12 to July 16, Quinnipiac University surveyed 934 New York State voters, with a margin of error of 4.1 percentage points, including the design effect. The survey includes 415 Democrats, with a margin of error of 6.2 percentage points, including the design effect. Live interviewers call landlines and cell phones.