Republican Lee Zeldin Narrowly Defeats Kathy Hochul in Latest New York Poll

Republican Representative Lee Zeldin, who is running for New York governor in this year's midterms, seems to be narrowly leading his Democratic opponent Kathy Hochul, the state's incumbent governor, according to a new poll.

A Friday survey by polling firm co/efficient showed that the Republican candidate holds 46 percent of support from likely voters compared to Hochul's 45 percent. Meanwhile, 9 percent of respondents said they were unsure who they will vote for. The poll was carried out from October 18 to 19, surveying 1,056 likely general election voters, with an error of margin of 3.31 percent.

Both candidates will be facing each other in a state that has long been Democratic, but is slowly becoming more competitive. New York is also where eight congressional districts were won by either President Joe Biden or former President Donald Trump by less than 10 points in 2020.

Hochul has recently shifted her campaign's approach to focus on further efforts to create jobs and combat a high crime rate in New York City, after finding that voters are likely to care more about crime and the economy over abortion rights and issues caused by Trump, Politico reported on Saturday.

In a newly released TV ad on Friday, Hochul vowed to protect New Yorkers, and referenced measures taken by her office to address increasing crime and homelessness.

Hochul, who became governor after Andrew Cuomo resigned last year over sexual harassment allegations, has been accused of being "soft on crime."

However, she launched a $5 million project in response to the high crime rate in New York City, which increased 31 percent in 2022, according to New York Police Department (NYPD) data. Her response plan included installing cameras in public transportation systems. A $50 million in public safety funding was also announced in September.

Some Republicans including Zeldin, whose campaign is mainly focused on addressing crime, think that the increase is due to criminal justice reform policies such as cashless bail.

What Other Polls Show

Other polls show Hochul leading in the gubernatorial race over Zeldin, including the Schoen Cooperman Research's poll that showed Hochul only 6 percentage points up against Zeldin, according to the New York Post. The poll surveyed 824 likely voters from October 8 to 12 and carried a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

Another poll conducted from October 3 to 6 by Marist College showed Hochul leading by 8 points among "those who say they will definitely vote." Meanwhile, a poll from September 30 to October 3 by GOP-leaning Trafalgar Group, which surveyed 1,087 likely voters, revealed that the Democratic candidate is ahead of Zeldin by 2 points.

A Tuesday poll by Siena College found that Hochul held an 11 points lead over her Republican challenger, which is a decrease from 17 points three weeks ago. Another poll by Quinnipiac University showed the governor having a 4-percentage-point lead.

In a FiveThirtyEight poll on Friday, Hochul had 49.7 percent of voter support compared to Zeldin who held 42.9 percent of support.

Newsweek reached out to Hochul's and Zeldin's campaign for comment.