Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner leads City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in the race for New York City’s Democratic mayoral nomination for the first time, snatching the frontrunner mantle as the contest heads into the final months before the primary, the latest survey from The Wall Street Journal-NBC New York-Marist showed.
Among registered Democrats, Mr. Weiner had 25% of the vote, compared with Ms. Quinn, who had 20%, marking her lowest level of support since polling of the race began. Trailing them were former Comptroller Bill Thompson, at 13%, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, 10% and city Comptroller John Liu, 8%. Fewer than one in five Democrats say they are undecided.
“Things are changing – the race has been scrambled by Weiner’s candidacy,” said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion. “Weiner’s candidacy has gotten more acceptable to voters since he announced, (and) Quinn’s having a difficult time reversing what has been a slow but steady decline in her numbers.”