Mayor Eric Adams, who faces a federal investigation into his campaign fund-raising and rampant criticism over his handling of the migrant crisis, has seen his approval rating plunge to 28 percent, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday.
The approval rating — the lowest for any New York City mayor in a Quinnipiac poll since it began surveying the city in 1996 — reveals the extent of the political damage Mr. Adams has suffered in recent weeks, after the F.B.I. seized his cellphones, a woman filed a legal claim accusing him of sexual assault in 1993 and he made unpopular budget cuts to the police, schools and libraries.
Roughly 58 percent of New Yorkers disapproved of Mr. Adams’s job as mayor, and the dissatisfaction was nearly across the board. A majority of those polled said that the mayor did not have strong leadership qualities, did not understand their problems and was not honest or trustworthy.
He also received some of his lowest ratings over his handling of homelessness and the city budget, with only 22 percent of voters supporting him on those issues.
“This is certainly a sobering snapshot for this moment in time for Mayor Adams, but also for the city,” said Mary Snow, an assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll. “Voters are worried about a number of big issues affecting New York City right now, and they’re not happy about the way things are going.”
The prior lowest approval rating for a New York mayor came in July 2003 when Michael R. Bloomberg fell to 31 percent during his first term, according to Quinnipiac University.
Mr. Adams, a Democrat who ran for mayor on a public safety message, had seen his approval rating fall this year as he struggled to manage an influx of migrants from the southern border. Then on Nov. 2, the F.B.I. raided the home of his chief fund-raiser, revealing a broad public corruption investigation into whether his 2021 campaign conspired with the Turkish government to receive illegal foreign donations.
Fabien Levy, Mr. Adams’s deputy mayor for communications, questioned the poll’s methodology and said that Mr. Adams was improving the city.
“The real numbers cannot be questioned: Crime is down, jobs are up and we continue to deliver billions of dollars into the pockets of working people,” he said. “There will always be more work to do, but there is no question that this city is in a better place under Mayor Adams’s leadership.”
The mayor received his only positive rating from Black voters, who approved of the job he was doing, 48 percent to 38 percent. His approval rating with Hispanic voters — a key part of his coalition outside Manhattan — was only 20 percent.
The poll surveyed nearly 1,300 registered New York City voters between late November and early December. Asked about the federal investigation into his 2021 campaign, 22 percent of voters believe Adams did something illegal, and 30 percent believe he did something unethical but not illegal. About 20 percent said he did not do anything wrong.
Mr. Adams recently announced that he was slashing the budgets of city agencies and blamed the cuts on the rising costs of the migrant crisis. The cuts included freezing the hiring of police officers and closing libraries on Sundays.
The poll found that 65 percent of voters supported raising taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers to help close the city’s budget gap. Adrienne Adams, the City Council speaker, has supported raising revenues to avoid budget cuts, but Mr. Adams has resisted the idea.
Ben Tulchin, a pollster for Mr. Adams, said in a statement that the mayor “understands voters are frustrated,” and he was working on issues like affordable housing and “taking on MAGA Republicans in Washington and around the country who want to see our city fail.”
Christina Greer, a political science professor who is currently a fellow at the City College of New York, said that it was still possible for Mr. Adams to recover from his low approval rating, as Mr. Bloomberg did when he went on to serve three terms as mayor.
“This will hopefully be a time for him to reflect and make changes, as opposed to doubling down and digging in his heels,” she said.
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