Former Congressman Anthony Weiner’s first week in the race for the Democratic nomination for New York City Mayor has gone very well for him, but he still seems to be far from his goal of winning:
Former Rep. Anthony Weiner has slashed away at frontrunner Christine Quinn’s lead in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary, according to a poll released Tuesday, cutting her advantage in half in a little over a month.
Weiner, who formally entered the race last week, now draws 19 percent of the vote in the crowded primary field, according to the Marist University poll. Quinn, the city council speaker who is trying to become the city’s first openly gay mayor, draws 24 percent of the vote. Quinn’s lead is within the poll’s margin of error. In April, she held an 11-point lead over Weiner, 26 percent to 15 percent.
If no candidate receives 40 percent in the first round of voting, the primary would head to a run-off. There, Quinn’s lead is safer: she tops Weiner, 48 percent to 33 percent.
Given the fact that there are presently nine declared candidates for the Democratic nomination, it seems inevitable that there is going to be a runoff. Not all of these nine are serious contenders, of course, but they divide up the vote enough that it’s going to be difficult for any single candidate to get above 40% of the vote. If these numbers hold up, then it suggests that it will be difficult for the former Congressman to get beyond the final hurdle to his political redemption.
