Poll Finds Gain for Mayor, but a Long Way to Go
By JIM RUTENBERG and MARJORIE CONNELLY
Published: February 16, 2005
After three years of trying to connect with New Yorkers, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg appears to be making some progress. A New York Times poll made public yesterday shows a steady rise in his favorability ratings as he begins his run for a second term.
The poll suggests that the mayor still has a long way to go, particularly in how people view his stewardship of the city, since it shows about as many New Yorkers disapproving of how he is handling his job as mayor as approve of it.
But New Yorkers, who have shown a recent preference for mayors with outsize personalities like Edward I. Koch and Rudolph W. Giuliani, appear to be warming finally to Mr. Bloomberg, who has worked to shed a common impression of him as a technocratic billionaire out of touch with the voters. The new poll shows that 41 percent of registered voters now view him favorably, a jump from 31 percent last summer.
Perhaps just as important for the mayor, most of those polled have yet to form opinions, favorable or unfavorable, of his Democratic opponents. That presents a singular opportunity for Mr. Bloomberg, who has tens of millions of dollars to spend in shaping both his own image and the perceptions of his opponents in this year's mayoral race.
The mayor is starting his campaign in earnest, and last night he had a party for his volunteers at the B. B. King Blues Club. Yet to come is an expected blitz of television, radio and Internet commercials promoting Mr. Bloomberg, who spent more than $75 million on his last campaign.
The citywide poll, of 1,014 adults, was conducted by telephone between Feb. 4 and Sunday and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. Of the total, 780 people said they were registered to vote. Those results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/nyregion/16york.html?hp&ex=1108616400&en=c005a0eec8059d7f&ei=5094&partner=homepage
