NEW YORK, February 13, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – Public approval for New York’s Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo has dropped to a historic low according to new polling data, but the reaction of Empire State residents to a radical pro-abortion law he signed last month does not appear to be a factor.
On Monday, Siena College released the results of a survey of 778 registered voters, the New York Times reports, which found that his favorability rating has declined eight points in just a month, from 51 percent to 43 percent. Half of respondents said they have an unfavorable view of the governor, a seven-point rise. Only 35 percent said they think Cuomo is doing an “excellent” or “good” job as governor.
While blacks, Latinos, and self-described liberals continue to approve of him, his support among Democrats, Republicans, and independents all fell, leading to Cuomo’s lowest numbers so far of his eight-year tenure as governor.
The poll follows New York’s enactment of legislation that declares a “fundamental right” to abortion, erases the state’s recognition of preborn babies as potential homicide victims, removes abortion from the penal code entirely, and allows licensed health practitioners other than full doctors to commit abortions. It’s been the subject of intense national condemnation, leading some to credit it with Cuomo’s current woes.
However, the Siena poll also found that New York voters approve of the pro-abortion law 47 percent to 32 percent and are on board with a wave of other left-wing laws supported by Cuomo, Syracuse.com reports.
“It’s not clear what factors affected Cuomo’s ratings in New York City and its suburbs,” reporter Mark Weiner writes, but he floats New York City’s “troubled” public housing agency and a Cuomo-backed “congestion pricing surcharge that would apply to all for-hire vehicles traveling through parts of Manhattan” as possible factors.
The news comes as Cuomo met with President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday, where the president reportedly reiterated his criticism of the abortion law. It’s unknown exactly how the conversation went, but Cuomo issued a statement afterward accusing Trump of “govern[ing] by division.”