Politics & Government

De Blasio's 2nd Debate Performance A Flop, Poll Shows

Mayor de Blasio failed to impress Democratic voters as he sparred with former vice president Joe Biden, a new national poll shows.

Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks at a news conference in City Hall on Friday, Aug. 2, 2019.
Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks at a news conference in City Hall on Friday, Aug. 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

NEW YORK — Voters aren't likely to pick up Hizzoner's pilot. Mayor Bill de Blasio's performance in the second round of presidential debates was a flop with his party's voters, a new nationwide poll shows.

Zero percent of Democratic voters who watched or paid attention to last week's debates said the mayor did the best job among the 20 White House hopefuls on the stage in Detroit, according to the Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday.

And 6 percent of those voters said de Blasio's performance was the worst, tying him with former Maryland Rep. John Delaney for the third-highest rate, the survey found. Only former Vice President Joe Biden, self-help author Marianne Williamson and California Sen. Kamala Harris got worse reviews.

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Some 81 percent of the Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents whom Quinnipiac surveyed watched or listened to the back-to-back debates on July 30 and 31 or paid close attention to news stories about them.

De Blasio's second appearance in front of a national audience — which was dogged by local issues — did not help him gain traction in the crowded primary field, the poll indicates.

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Zero percent of Democratic voters said they would vote for de Blasio despite his attacks on Biden, the race's clear frontrunner, over his record on immigration and international trade issues.

Thirteen other candidates — including New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand — also had nil support in the poll. Biden maintained his lead with 32 percent saying they would vote for him, followed by Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren at 21 percent and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at 14 percent.

"Sen. Elizabeth Warren's policy heavy presentation and former Vice President Joseph Biden's ability to handle the heat from all corners put them on top," Quinnipiac University Poll assistant director Tim Malloy said in a news release.

Quinnipiac surveyed 807 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independent voters by phone from Aug. 1 to 5. The poll has a margin of error of 4.1 percentage points.


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