New York Gubernatorial Race Heats Up: Republican Lee Zeldin 6 Points Away from Democrat Kathy Hochul

The gubernatorial race in New York is heating up as the Republican nominee for governor, Rep. Lee Zeldin, is only six points away from Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul in the most recent poll from co/efficient.

The poll, taken two months before the election, showed Hochul ahead by only six points.

Forty-nine percent of the respondents said they would vote to elect the incumbent governor, and 43 percent said they would vote for Zeldin, who currently represents Eastern Long Island in the House. Eight percent said they were undecided.

A similar number of respondents viewed each candidate favorably, but Hochul had a higher unfavorability rating than Zeldin. Thirty-eight percent viewed Hochul favorably, while 45 percent viewed her negatively. At the same time, 36 percent said they viewed Zeldin favorably, while only 27 percent viewed him negatively.

The poll was taken the first week in September, right after Hochul came under fire for stretching ethics rules by receiving more than $475,000 in campaign donations from state officials appointed by her disgraced predecessor, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D).

Breitbart News wrote at the time:

A longstanding New York executive order that Hochul reissued on her first day in office prohibits campaign donations from state officials the governor appointed.

Despite this rule, Hochul took more than $475,000 in campaign donations from at least 40 political appointees or their family members who serve on government boards and agencies.

…

However, Hochul’s team argued the longstanding executive order does not apply to her because these donations came from state officials who Cuomo appointed.

The poll also showed that the respondents viewed President Joe Biden unfavorably. Only 43 percent viewed him favorably, while 46 percent viewed him negatively. Biden’s approval rating being underwater in the state could potentially hurt the Democrats in tough races.

The New York gubernatorial survey was taken September 5 to 7 among 1,194 likely 2022 general election voters and had a +/- 3.32 percent margin of error.

Moreover, 50 percent of those surveyed were Democrats, while Republicans comprised 34 percent of the respondents. Independents made up 16 percent.

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.