About 61% of New Yorkers approve of Mayor Eric Adams’ performance three months into office — with more than half in support of his policies on the pandemic, policing and schools, according to a Marist College poll released Monday.
The poll suggests that, despite the multiple crises of COVID, crime and homelessness currently facing the city, Adams remains in a honeymoon period with New Yorkers. But pollsters warn there are signs his support is not particularly deep and could easily crumble: the survey shows that only 47% think Adams is changing the city for the better.
“Almost half the city doesn't have a sense of whether things are going better or worse,” said Lee Miringoff, the director of the Marist College for Public Opinion, during a Zoom briefing on Monday afternoon with reporters.
“He's off to a good start, but he still has some convincing to do,” he said.
In the poll, which surveyed 891 adults between March 1st and March 8th, Adams scored the highest on his pandemic response, with 64% of respondents saying they approve of his performance, while 61% said they approve of his handling of the relationship between the police and communities.
His handling of schools earned Adams a 55% approval rating. But in a potentially ominous sign, his lowest marks came on the issue that got him elected — only 53% of New Yorkers said they approve of his performance on crime.
“The warning signs are there with the reality of crime and people are feeling right now not as strong on that issue as they are on others for him,” Miringoff said.
The latest police statistics show crime is up in every category compared to last year, with major crime up 45% compared to the same time last year. Monday marked the rollout of a new anti-gun unit that Adams has made a signature part of his plan to combat violent crime.
The mayor on Monday traveled to Washington D.C. for a conference of mayors across the country. He is expected to hold a press conference Monday evening on the recent string of shootings of homeless men in New York City and Washington D.C.
The Marist survey follows a Siena College poll released in January that saw Adams with a 63% favorability rating among New York City voters.
Adams notched considerably higher approval ratings than his predecessors in their first few months. Mayor Bill de Blasio scored 39% in his first Marist poll, although another New York Times, NY1 and Siena College survey found 49% of city residents giving his performance a thumbs up.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who took charge of the city after the 9/11 attacks, received a 50% approval rating early in his administration.
Miringoff noted that the poll shows Adams has not been a polarizing political figure. As only the second Black mayor of New York City, his favorability is high among three different racial groups captured in the survey—68% of Black residents and 64% of white residents said they approved of the job he was doing. Among Latinos, 59% said they had a favorable impression of Adams.
View the full polling results here.
