Mayor's Approval Dips As Crime Stays Top-Of-Mind For NYers, Poll Shows

NEW YORK, NY — Crime is top of mind for New York City voters no matter their gender, political party, age, race or borough — and most don't think Mayor Eric Adams is doing enough to tackle it, according to a new poll.

Fifty-four percent of New York City voters surveyed in a new Quinnipiac poll said they disapprove of the way the mayor is handling crime, with only 37 percent saying they approve of his performance on the issue, results revealed Wednesday show.

The rating is particularly significant given that crime topped the list of pressing issues for a whopping 49 percent of New Yorkers, soaring past the next priorities of affordable housing and homelessness, chosen by only 15 and 12 percent of voters, respectively, results show.

The mayor's score is also a significant dip from earlier in his time in office, when 49 percent of people said he was doing a good job tackling crime, the poll shows.

"In the wake of April's mass shooting on the subway along with an increase in major crimes, confidence slips in the Mayor being able to reduce gun violence," Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Mary Snow, referring to the Sunset Park shooting that left more than 20 injured.

There was only one other issue where New Yorkers think Adams has done worse — homelessness. 56 percent of voters disapproved of the mayor's handling of homelessness, which has included controversial sweeps of encampments and removing homeless New Yorkers from subways.

The mayor still performed well in a few categories, though his numbers have dipped slightly in all since February.

Fifty-three percent of voters approved of Adams' response to the coronavirus, 49 percent approved of his handling of relations with police and 41 percent gave him positive marks for public school issues, the polls shows.

Overall, 43 percent of New Yorkers approved of Adams' general performance as mayor, with 37 percent disapproving and 20 percent not offering an opinion. The rating is a slight dip from February, when 46 percent of New Yorkers approved and only 27 percent disapproved, researchers noted.

"Mayor Adams gets a positive score on his job performance, but it's tepid," Snow said.

Here's a look at where voters stood on other questions in the poll:

Crime:

• An overwhelming majority of voters (86 percent) support having more police officers in the New York City subway system, while 12 percent oppose it.
• A majority of voters (62 percent) think installing metal detectors in New York City's subway system is a good idea, while 35 percent think it is a bad idea.
• 43 percent of voters are either very confident (8 percent) or somewhat confident (35 percent) that Mayor Adams will reduce gun violence in New York City, while 53 percent are either not so confident (30 percent) or not confident at all (23 percent).

Homelessness:

• More than 7 in 10 voters (72 percent) think New York City is doing too little to help homeless people, while 19 percent think it is doing about the right amount, and 2 percent think it is doing too much to help homeless people.

Economy:

• 29 percent of voters say the state of New York City's economy is either excellent (2 percent) or good (27 percent), while 70 percent say the state of New York City's economy is either not so good (41 percent) or poor (29 percent).
• 28 percent of voters think the economic conditions in New York City will get better during the next 12 months, while 32 percent think they will get worse and 37 percent think they will stay about the same.
• 66 percent are either very confident (25 percent) or somewhat confident (41 percent) that New York City's economy will fully recover from the coronavirus pandemic, while one third of voters (33 percent) are either not so confident (23 percent) or not confident at all (10 percent).
• Half of voters (50 percent) think tourism in New York City will increase during the next 12 months, while 14 percent think it will decrease and 34 percent think it will stay about the same.

Coronavirus:

• Nearly 7 in 10 voters (69 percent) think riders on buses, subways, and commuter trains should be required to wear masks, while 29 percent think they should not be required to wear masks.
• Even if masks are not required to ride on buses, subways, and commuter trains, more than three-quarters of voters (77 percent) say they would wear a mask when riding on them, while 21 percent say they would not.

Check out more of the poll results here.