Poll: Most New Yorkers don’t want Cuomo to resign, say he should not run for reelection

A majority of New Yorkers believe that Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) should remain in office amid mounting scandals — but they don’t want him to run for reelection either, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll.

Fifty-five percent of voters said that Cuomo shouldn’t resign, despite calls by a growing number of officials on both sides of the aisle for him to step down. Forty percent believe that Cuomo should leave office. 

Cuomo’s been hit with a series of controversies this year.

In January, New York state Attorney General Letitia James (D) released a report accusing Cuomo’s administration of undercounting coronavirus-related deaths at nursing homes by declining to add to the total residents who became sickened while in long-term care facilities but died in hospitals.

A top aide to Cuomo later admitted in a private conversation with state lawmakers that the administration had underreported the nursing home deaths out of concern that releasing the true figures could trigger a Justice Department investigation. 

Cuomo’s troubles have only deepened since then.

Three former female employees have come forward to accuse him of sexual harassment. While he acknowledged past behavior that may have made women uncomfortable, he has denied doing so intentionally and said he never made unwanted physical contact with anyone. 

Meanwhile, a growing number of journalists and legislators have accused him of using verbally abusive tactics against them. 

State lawmakers in Albany struck a deal this week to strip the governor of the emergency powers he was granted last year as the coronavirus pandemic took hold in New York. 

New Yorkers may want to see Cuomo finish out his current term in the governor’s mansion, but most don’t want him to continue on past that. The Quinnipiac poll found that 59 percent of New York voters do not want him to run for a fourth term next year, when he’s scheduled to go up for reelection. 

Only a little more than one-third of respondents — 36 percent — said that he should run to keep his job for another four years. 

As for Cuomo’s current job performance, voters are largely split in their opinions. Forty-five percent said they approve of the governor’s work, while 46 percent disapprove. 

He fares better when it comes to his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Fifty-six percent said they approve of how he’s led the state through the outbreak compared to 41 percent who disapprove. Still, that’s a big drop from last May, when a staggering 81 percent gave his handling of the pandemic positive reviews and only 17 percent disapproved.

The Quinnipiac poll is based on responses from 935 self-identified registered voters in New York gathered from March 2-3. It has a margin of sampling error of 3.2 percentage points.