Almost half of New Yorkers approve of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) as their new senator, an independent poll released Tuesday found.
46 percent of New York state voters said they approved of New York Gov. David Paterson’s (D) decision to name Gillibrand to fill the vacancy left by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Senate. 24 percent of voters said they disagreed with Paterson’s decision, while almost a third — 30 percent — said they were unsure.
Gillibrand, whose name recognition skyrocketed since a December 2008 poll, also fares well against two potential 2010 Republican challengers.
Gillibrand leads former Gov. George Pataki (R) 44-42 with 14 percent undecided, while she leads Rep. Peter King (R) 29-24 with a more substantial 27 percent undecided.
The poll, conducted by Marist on January 26, has a four percent margin of error.