December 14, 2005 - Pirro Runs Better For Att'y General, But Still Trails, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Golisano Is Top GOP Choice For Governor Westchester District Attorney Jeanine Pirro runs better for State Attorney General than she does for U.S. Senate, but she still trails Democratic contenders Andrew Cuomo or Mark Green, according to a Quinnipiac University poll of New York State voters released today. In the 2006 U.S. Senate race, Democratic incumbent Sen. Hillary Clinton beats Pirro 62 - 30 percent. Matching Pirro against the two leading Democrats in the Attorney General's race, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds: Mark Green beats Pirro 43 - 35 percent; Andrew Cuomo beats Pirro 49 - 32 percent. "On the Senate line, Jeanine Pirro gets wiped out 2 - 1. Running for Attorney General, she loses more respectably - but she still loses. This is not great news for Pirro, but she still runs better in a race where she insists she's not running," said Maurice Carroll, Director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the Democratic front-runner in the race for Governor, has a 68 - 13 percent approval rating, his highest ever, and big leads over any likely Republican contenders: 62 - 15 percent over Randy Daniels; 60 - 22 percent over Thomas Golisano; 63 - 16 percent over William Weld; 64 - 14 percent over John Faso. Among registered Republicans, 42 percent are undecided on who they would back for Governor. Golisano gets 36 percent, followed by 9 percent for Faso, 8 percent for Weld and 3 percent for Daniels. "For Governor: Two regular Republicans, one carpetbagger, one prodigal - and the prodigal leads. Golisano won public attention running against Republicans. Now it's helping him dominate the Republican field," Carroll said. "The Republicans better decide soon who they're going to run for Governor. They'll need all the time they can get to catch Spitzer." Among Democrats, Spitzer tops Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi 69 - 11 percent. "Suozzi? Maybe that Wall Street money that's supposed to support him will win him some recognition. For now, he's all but anonymous," Carroll said. Hillary Clinton is a "great" Senator, 15 percent of New York State voters say, with 46 percent who say she's a "good" Senator, 25 percent who say "so-so" and 12 percent who say "bad." A total of 49 percent of voters say they will "definitely" or "probably" vote for her if she runs for President in 2008, with 45 percent who say they "probably" or "definitely" won't vote for her. Gov. George Pataki gets a 49 - 38 percent approval rating, with 43 percent of New York State voters saying he is a "great" or "good" Governor, and 56 percent saying he is a "so-so" or "bad" Governor. If Pataki runs for President, 28 percent say they will "definitely" or "probably" vote for him, while 64 percent say they "probably" or "definitely" won't vote for him. From December 7 - 12, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,091 New York State registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points. The survey includes 367 Republicans with a margin of error of +/- 5.1 percent, and 479 Democrats with a margin of error of +/- 4.5 percent. The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Florida and nationwide as a public service and for research. For additional data -- www.quinnipiac.edu or call (203) 582-5201 1. Do you approve or disapprove of the way George Pataki is handling his job as Governor? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Approve 49% 68% 39% 48% 51% 46% Disapprove 38 23 48 38 37 38 DK/NA 14 9 14 15 12 16 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Approve 40% 49% 47% 44% 58% Disapprove 47 38 40 38 32 DK/NA 13 13 13 18 9 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way George Pataki is handling his job as Governor? Highest Lowest Approve Approve Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 4 Feb 10 Oct 2 Feb 10 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2001 2005 Approve 49 46 49 36 34 81 34 Disapprove 38 40 38 47 49 12 49 DK/NA 14 14 13 17 17 7 17 2. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Hillary Rodham Clinton is handling her job as United States Senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Approve 62% 31% 88% 57% 58% 66% Disapprove 32 62 9 35 36 29 DK/NA 6 6 3 8 7 5 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Approve 49% 58% 56% 72% 58% Disapprove 46 34 37 23 37 DK/NA 5 8 7 5 5 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Hillary Rodham Clinton is handling her job as United States Senator? Highest Lowest Approve Approve Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 5 Feb 9 Feb 9 Feb 14 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2001 Approve 62 63 63 63 65 65 38 Disapprove 32 31 29 28 27 27 30 DK/NA 6 6 8 10 8 8 33 3. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Charles Schumer is handling his job as United States Senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Approve 61% 52% 71% 55% 57% 65% Disapprove 25 36 14 31 30 21 DK/NA 14 12 15 14 13 14 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Approve 57% 58% 58% 66% 60% Disapprove 31 27 28 21 27 DK/NA 12 15 15 13 12 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Charles Schumer is handling his job as United States Senator? (* = Also hit 69% on 10/02/01) Highest Lowest Approve Approve Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 5 Feb 9 Dec 8 Apr 15 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2004 * 1999 Approve 61 63 63 61 66 69 51 Disapprove 25 23 21 19 19 16 22 DK/NA 14 14 16 20 15 15 28 4. Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as President? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Approve 31% 61% 10% 35% 34% 29% Disapprove 65 35 88 62 62 67 DK/NA 4 4 2 3 3 4 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Approve 42% 34% 36% 25% 33% Disapprove 56 65 63 69 63 DK/NA 2 2 2 6 4 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as President? (* = Also hit 82% on 10/2/2001) Highest Lowest Approve Approve Dec 14 Oct 5 Aug 3 May 5 Feb 10 Nov 14 Oct 5 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2001 * 2005 Approve 31 29 35 33 38 82 29 Disapprove 65 67 61 61 58 15 67 DK/NA 4 4 4 6 5 3 4 6. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Eliot Spitzer is handling his job as State Attorney General? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Approve 68% 64% 72% 65% 71% 66% Disapprove 13 16 11 16 14 13 DK/NA 19 20 17 19 15 22 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Approve 64% 72% 70% 69% 64% Disapprove 21 12 14 12 13 DK/NA 15 16 16 19 23 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Eliot Spitzer is handling his job as State Attorney General? Highest Lowest Approve Approve Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 4 Feb 10 Dec 14 Apr 6 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2000 Approve 68 60 60 57 61 68 51 Disapprove 13 17 15 17 13 13 14 DK/NA 19 23 24 26 26 19 35 10. If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and Randy Daniels the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Spitzer 62% 33% 90% 54% 63% 62% Daniels 15 41 2 13 16 14 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 2 - 2 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 2 - 2 1 1 DK/NA 20 23 8 28 18 21 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Spitzer 58% 61% 60% 70% 54% Daniels 25 14 17 12 17 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 2 2 - 3 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) - 2 1 1 2 DK/NA 16 22 20 17 24 TREND: If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and Randy Daniels the Republican, for whom would you vote? Dec 14 Oct 4 2005 2004 Spitzer 62 60 Daniels 15 15 SMONE ELSE 1 2 WLDN'T VOTE 1 1 DK/NA 20 22 11. If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and John Faso the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Spitzer 64% 36% 90% 56% 64% 63% Faso 14 39 2 11 15 13 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 2 - 1 2 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 - - 2 1 1 DK/NA 21 23 8 30 18 22 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Spitzer 63% 61% 62% 71% 55% Faso 18 13 14 10 18 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 2 2 2 - 2 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) - 1 1 1 1 DK/NA 16 23 21 17 24 TREND: If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and John Faso the Republican, for whom would you vote? Dec 14 Oct 4 2005 2005 Spitzer 64 60 Faso 14 14 SMONE ELSE 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE 1 1 DK/NA 21 23 12. If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and Thomas Golisano the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Spitzer 60% 29% 88% 53% 61% 60% Golisano 22 50 4 23 23 21 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 1 1 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 1 - 1 1 1 DK/NA 16 18 7 21 15 17 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Spitzer 47% 51% 50% 75% 55% Golisano 41 29 32 11 20 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - 1 1 - 3 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) - 1 1 1 1 DK/NA 11 19 17 12 20 TREND: If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and Thomas Golisano the Republican, for whom would you vote? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 2005 2005 2005 Spitzer 60 56 58 Golisano 22 22 22 SMONE ELSE 1 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE 1 1 1 DK/NA 16 19 18 13. If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and William Weld the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Spitzer 63% 36% 88% 56% 65% 61% Weld 16 43 3 13 18 14 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 - 2 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 1 - 1 - 1 DK/NA 19 19 9 28 16 22 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Spitzer 63% 62% 62% 71% 51% Weld 18 15 16 13 21 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - 1 1 - 2 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) - - - 1 2 DK/NA 19 22 21 14 25 TREND: If the 2006 election for governor were being held today, and the candidates were Eliot Spitzer the Democrat and William Weld the Republican, for whom would you vote? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 4 2005 2005 2005 2005 Spitzer 63 60 60 60 Weld 16 16 16 16 SMONE ELSE 1 2 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE 1 1 1 1 DK/NA 19 21 21 22 14. If the election for United States Senator were being held today, and the candidates were Hillary Rodham Clinton the Democrat and Jeanine Pirro the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Clinton 62% 24% 92% 57% 57% 66% Pirro 30 68 4 32 33 27 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 - 2 2 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 2 1 1 1 1 DK/NA 6 5 3 8 6 6 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Clinton 49% 55% 54% 76% 55% Pirro 44 34 37 15 40 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 1 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 2 2 1 1 DK/NA 4 7 6 6 4 TREND: If the 2006 election for United States Senator were being held today, and the candidates were Hillary Rodham Clinton the Democrat and Jeanine Pirro the Republican, for whom would you vote? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 5 2005 2005 2005 2005 Clinton 62 61 63 62 Pirro 30 30 29 27 SMONE ELSE 1 1 1 - WLDN'T VOTE 1 1 1 1 DK/NA 6 7 6 11 15. How would you rate Hillary Rodham Clinton as a United States Senator? Has she been a great senator, a good senator, a so so senator or a bad senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Great 15% 6% 28% 6% 11% 18% Good 46 28 56 51 44 47 So so 25 34 12 30 27 23 Bad 12 29 2 11 16 9 DK/NA 2 3 2 2 2 2 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Great 13% 13% 13% 20% 12% Good 35 46 43 51 43 So so 36 26 28 19 26 Bad 15 14 14 8 16 DK/NA 2 2 2 1 3 16. If Hillary Rodham Clinton were to run for President in 2008, how likely is it that you would vote for her? Do you think you would definitely vote for her, probably vote for her, probably not vote for her, or definitely not vote for her? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Definitely 24% 5% 40% 18% 14% 32% Probably 25 12 37 24 28 23 Probably not 13 15 7 19 15 11 Definitely not 32 66 8 33 35 29 DK/NA 6 2 7 7 8 5 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Definitely 22% 19% 20% 33% 17% Probably 15 27 24 27 24 Probably not 15 13 14 11 13 Definitely not 42 35 37 21 39 DK/NA 5 6 6 7 6 TREND: If Hillary Rodham Clinton were to run for President in 2008, how likely is it that you would vote for her? Do you think you would definitely vote for her, probably vote for her, probably not vote for her, or definitely not vote for her? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 2005 2005 2005 Definitely 24 23 24 Probably 25 28 27 Probably not 13 12 13 Definitely not 32 30 28 DK/NA 6 8 8 17. Regardless of how you would vote, do you think Hillary Rodham Clinton will or will not run for President in 2008? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Will 60% 64% 58% 62% 61% 59% Will not 28 31 31 25 29 28 DK/NA 12 5 11 13 11 13 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Will 55% 59% 58% 60% 62% Will not 30 31 31 26 28 DK/NA 15 10 11 14 10 TREND: Regardless of how you would vote, do you think Hillary Rodham Clinton will or will not run for President in 2008? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 2005 2005 2005 Will 60 57 56 Will Not 28 29 32 DK/NA 12 14 12 18. If Hillary Rodham Clinton runs for reelection to the Senate in 2006, do you think she should pledge to serve the full 6 year term or not? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Yes 53% 58% 44% 63% 53% 53% No 37 34 45 29 40 34 DK/NA 10 8 12 7 7 12 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Yes 58% 58% 58% 49% 52% No 36 35 35 38 38 DK/NA 6 7 7 14 10 TREND: If Hillary Rodham Clinton runs for reelection to the Senate in 2006, do you think she should pledge to serve the full 6 year term or not? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 5 2005 2005 2005 2005 Yes 53 59 60 60 No 37 30 30 30 DK/NA 10 12 10 11 19. Do you think of Hillary Rodham Clinton more as a liberal, moderate or conservative? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Liberal 41% 60% 30% 42% 46% 37% Moderate 40 20 51 45 39 42 Conservative 9 8 10 7 9 10 DK/NA 9 11 8 6 7 11 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Liberal 47% 40% 42% 37% 47% Moderate 37 38 38 43 41 Conservative 11 13 12 10 3 DK/NA 6 9 8 10 9 TREND: Do you think of Hillary Rodham Clinton more as a liberal, moderate, or conservative? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 May 5 Feb 9 Sep 27 Jun 7 2005 2005 2005 2005 2005 2000 2000 Liberal 41 42 46 52 52 62 55 Moderate 40 34 37 29 31 23 25 Conservative 9 13 10 10 8 8 9 DK/NA 9 11 8 8 9 7 11 20. If the election for State Attorney General were being held today, and the candidates were Andrew Cuomo the Democrat and Jeanine Pirro the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Cuomo 49% 20% 74% 40% 43% 53% Pirro 32 64 14 32 38 28 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 1 2 2 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 2 2 2 1 1 2 DK/NA 16 13 9 25 15 16 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Cuomo 48% 41% 43% 57% 46% Pirro 36 35 35 24 41 SMONE ELSE(VOL) - 2 1 1 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) - 2 2 3 1 DK/NA 15 20 19 15 11 21. If the election for State Attorney General were being held today, and the candidates were Mark Green the Democrat and Jeanine Pirro the Republican, for whom would you vote? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Green 43% 8% 73% 33% 40% 45% Pirro 35 73 12 38 38 33 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 2 2 2 2 3 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 2 1 2 2 2 2 DK/NA 18 16 11 26 17 19 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Green 39% 35% 36% 55% 35% Pirro 36 37 37 25 49 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 3 1 1 2 3 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) - 2 1 3 1 DK/NA 21 26 25 15 12 23. How would you rate George Pataki as governor of New York? Has he been a great governor, a good governor, a so-so governor or a bad governor? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Great 4% 9% 2% 2% 6% 3% Good 39 48 34 40 40 39 So so 46 38 52 47 43 48 Bad 10 6 12 10 10 9 DK/NA 1 - - 2 1 1 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Great 5% 4% 4% 6% 2% Good 31 37 36 37 50 So so 58 47 50 44 41 Bad 6 11 10 11 7 DK/NA - 1 1 2 0 24. If George Pataki were to run for President in 2008, how likely is it that you would vote for him? Do you think you would definitely vote for him, probably vote for him, probably not vote for him, or definitely not vote for him? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Definitely 4% 10% 3% 3% 4% 4% Probably 24 38 16 24 28 21 Probably not 28 25 28 31 28 28 Definitely not 36 22 46 33 34 38 DK/NA 8 6 8 9 6 10 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Definitely 10% 4% 6% 3% 3% Probably 23 25 25 21 28 Probably not 31 28 29 28 26 Definitely not 30 35 34 38 37 DK/NA 6 8 7 9 7 TREND: If George Pataki were to run for President in 2008, how likely is it that you would vote for him? Do you think you would definitely vote for him, probably vote for him, probably not vote for him, or definitely not vote for him? Dec 14 Oct 4 Aug 3 2005 2005 2005 Definitely 4 7 5 Probably 24 20 23 Probably not 28 27 28 Definitely not 36 41 37 DK/NA 8 5 8 28. Do you think going to war with Iraq was the right thing for the United States to do or the wrong thing? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Right thing 34% 66% 15% 32% 38% 30% Wrong thing 61 30 83 60 57 63 DK/NA 6 4 2 8 4 7 UpState..... UpState Urban Othr total NYC Sub Right thing 48% 38% 40% 24% 38% Wrong thing 49 58 56 68 57 DK/NA 2 5 4 8 5 TREND: Do you think going to war with Iraq was the right thing for the United States to do or the wrong thing? Dec 14 Oct 5 Sep 15 Aug 13 2005 2005 2004 2004 Right thing 34 31 42 39 Wrong thing 61 64 52 57 DK/NA 6 5 6 4 29. (If registered Republican) If the 2006 Republican primary for governor were being held today and the candidates were Randy Daniels, John Faso, William Weld and Tom Golisano, for whom would you vote? REGISTERED REPUBLICANS Tot Men Wom Daniels 3% 3% 3% Faso 9 9 8 Weld 8 10 7 Golisano 36 44 29 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 - 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 1 1 DK/NA 42 33 51 TREND: (If registered Republican) If the 2006 Republican primary for governor were being held today and the candidates were Randy Daniels, John Faso, William Weld and Tom Golisano, for whom would you vote? REGISTERED REPUBLICANS Dec 14 Oct 4 2005 2005 Daniels 3 7 Faso 9 8 Weld 8 6 Golisano 36 33 SMONE ELSE 1 3 WLDN'T VOTE 1 4 DK/NA 42 39 30. (If registered Democrat) If the 2006 Democratic primary for governor were being held today and the candidates were Tom Suozzi and Eliot Spitzer, for whom would you vote? REGISTERED DEMOCRATS Tot Men Wom Suozzi 11% 14% 9% Spitzer 69 70 68 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 - 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 2 - DK/NA 19 13 23
