NY Times: “Poll Finds Lukewarm Support for Bloomberg”
Posted: June 11th, 2009 | Author: Dump Bloomberg | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bloomberg popularity | No Comments »According to David W. Chen and Marjorie Connelly (6/9/2009), a poll conducted by the New York Times, NY 1 and Cornell University suggests that a majority of New Yorkers think Bloomberg “does not deserve another term.”
As fear increases in response to the economic downturn, confidence in Bloomberg’s “ability to lead the city out of the recession” has plummeted. This is “a troubling sign” for Bloomberg, whose entire justification for seeking to circumvent the will of the people as expressed in the term limit law was that his business expertise would be indispensable in these tough times.
According to the polls, 51 percent of New Yorkers believe “the city is on the wrong track”; over one-third were not able to answer when asked what they thought was the “best thing” Bloomberg has done as mayor.
Nevertheless, the Times pointed out, in addition to the traditional advantages enjoyed by an incumbent, Bloomberg has spent $20 million already on the race, and may spend as much as $100 million before it is over.
Instead of another Bloomberg term, many feel that “a fresh perspective” is needed.
Fifty-eight percent of New Yorkers feel that city taxes are rising under Mr. Bloomberg.
The impact of Bloomberg’s racist spending cuts and rezoning plans that are disproportionately harming people of color are also affecting his ratings. Bloomberg’s favorability is 10 points lower among black residents than whites. Blacks are also more likely than whites to say that a new mayor is needed.
A majority of New Yorkers believe “important aspects of city life, including affordable housing and crime,” have not improved or have gotten worse under Bloomberg.
The poll suggests that one third of New Yorkers are part of a household in which someone has experienced unemployment in the past year. For a majority of these people, unemployment “had a serious effect on the family’s standard of living.”
Only 20 percent are confident that Bloomberg’s policies will generate new jobs.
Finally, fifty-eight percent of New Yorkers disapprove of Bloomberg’s term limits extension.