NY voters prefer Kennedy, Cuomo

Posted: Tuesday, December 09, 2008 2:48 PM by Mark Murray
Filed Under: Congress, Democrats

From NBC's Mark Murray
While New York Gov. David Paterson (D) has the ultimate decision in picking the replacement for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, a new Marist poll shows that New York voters are split in their preference between Caroline Kennedy and state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

Kennedy and Cuomo each receive the support of 25% of registered New York voters -- with Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown getting 6%, Reps. Nydia Velazquez and Kirsten Gillibrand getting 4%, and Rep. Carolyn Maloney and Nassau County Executive Tom Souzzi getting 3%.

Among Democrats, however, Kennedy leads Cuomo, 31%-21%.

Also in the poll -- which was conducted of 503 registered voters on Dec. 8, and which has a margin of error of plus-minus 4.5 percentage points -- 70% think Clinton will do an excellent or good job as Secretary of State, and 54% approve of Paterson's job.

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Comments

I hope David Paterson appoints Caroline Kennedy to Hillary's seat. She is a class act. She's very intelligent (passed the bar exam the first time; her brother John, didn't, has name recognition and could earn a lot of money for her re-election bid. She'd also be helpful to Obama in the Senate and would have instant revognition whereever she goes.

Diane from Illinois (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 2:58 PM)

Kennedy has a lot more on the political ball than our "special" friend Cuomo. The bottom line is that, Kennedy can accomplish a lot more in the Senate, and do it well. She is very smart, and knows how to get politically around Washington. Cuomo still needs to use his "special" map with "special" directions so he will not get lost, until eventually politically found. Kennedy would be a better choice. That is fact!

Rock,Janesville,Wisconsin (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 2:59 PM)

Either Kennedy or Cuomo would be great choices. But like registered Democrats I hope it's Caroline.

pick Caroline (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:10 PM)

Make a decision now before it can be corrupted. If you can't decide just have a special election and let the people decide.

Just want to Do the Right Thing (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:10 PM)

Either of the two mentioned sound good

I really like Cuomo's father
A pity Mario never ran for President
He would have been much better than Bill

A special election has been proposed for the state of Illinois

Hopefully, that is what will happen.
But, Blagojevich has a possible veto over the bill

MSierra, SF (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:12 PM)

I believe either Cuomo or Kennedy would do a good job representing the state of New York. Since Kennedy has the edge in the poll and the media seems to be pressing for her she will likely be the choice.

eagle1776 (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:14 PM)

'...To many Americans, the Bush Administration was a national disaster,"...'

It still is a national disaster

Speaking of polls:

'...QUOTE OF THE DAY.... A new national poll from CNN/Opinion Research Corporation finds 79% of Americans approve of the job Barack Obama has done so far. That's probably not too significant -- this is still the transition period, when exercising one's limited authority is a lot easier -- but 79% is still a pretty solid number.

In fact, Obama's current support is 14 percentage points higher than George W. Bush's pre-inauguration score, and 17 points higher than Bill Clinton's support in 1992. (Obama's approval rating is also a whopping 51 points here than Bush's current approval rating.)

With this in mind, here's the Quote of the Day:

"An Obama job approval rating of 79 percent! That's the sort of rating you see when the public rallies around a leader after a national disaster. To many Americans, the Bush Administration was a national disaster," says CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider....'

I sure do !!

MSierra, SF (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:15 PM)

How can Kennedy be appointed to the job when she does not live in NYC? Cuomo is a native New Yorker. What's up with this Kennedymania and Obamania?

alex Martinez (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:17 PM)

IF NEW YORK OPERATES LIKE ILLINOIS, KENNEDY WILL BE THE NEW SENATOR.

CROOK COOK IN NEW YORK, TOO ?? (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:17 PM)

Palin would be a great NY Senator.

Michael Furlong, LI, NY (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:24 PM)

There is no other choice here. Caroline Kennedy should be given the temporary seat. I think she would work very hard for the people of NY.

C A, Tuscaloosa, AL (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:26 PM)

Pathetic and evil
Throw the book at this BOZO

'...On Page 59, Blagojevich muses, "I’ve got this thing and it’s f*cking golden, and, uh, uh,
I’m just not giving it up for f*ckin’ nothing.
I’m not gonna do it.
And, and I can always use it.
I can parachute me there."
Blagojevich expresses the hope that he will receive some kind of appointment in return for choosing Obama's favored candidate.
"I want to make money," says the governor...'

MSierra, SF (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:28 PM)

It could be a hard choice for Patterson to pick Clinton's replacement. There are so many things to consider. The first thing to think about is really how good a job could that person do for the state of NY. It is too bad that there have been mentions of fundraising for the next election cycle and who knows who else.

S.B. Stein E.B. NJ (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:51 PM)

And how much is the New York Senate seat selling for? Given the Illinois situation perhaps an election is in order.

Jerry (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 3:59 PM)

Now that this Senate replacement has gone public, does anyone (in their right mind) think that Paterson can pull back or refuse to make an offer to Caroline?
This is Caoline's seat if she wants it. Pundits can talk about Caroline's nature (character) or how good of a campaigner she would be, but all that is just talk. It is too late for a perceived offer to be retracted. Caroline is qualified, well versed in Constitutional law...and a very nice person. I have not heard anyone say a negative word about her work.

Ron Indiana (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:01 PM)

And how much is the New York Senate seat selling for? Given the Illinois situation perhaps an election is in order.

Jerry, Philadelphia, Pa (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:01 PM)

Oh Gov. Patterson, please do not appoint Cuomo. He is too busy reviewing letters sent out by student loan companies instead of investigating the Wall Street criminals.

John Smith (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:03 PM)

Oh Gov. Patterson, please do not appoint Cuomo. He is too busy reviewing letters sent out by student loan companies instead of investigating the Wall Street criminals.

John Smith (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:03 PM)

If the NY voters prefer Cuomo and Kennedy, then have a special election. And let the other party have a say in the matter too. We see what happens when one person has the ultimate power of selecting a replacement Senator rather then letting the people decide. You think political favors aren't be bantered about in New York just like in Illinois. Delaware too. Maybe not as blatent, but unethical just the same.

Terri Hart, NC (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:07 PM)

Ought to be interesting to see WHO the gov picks and HOW he picks. Does he decide based on the polls or based on some other political yardstick?

Indie Woman in Denver (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:11 PM)

I don't live in New York but would think about moving there to vote for Caroline Kennedy. Each year she grows in stature and possiblities. They won't find a better person for the job.

Now there's a female presidential candidate I could get behind.

KNH, HI (Sent Tuesday, December 09, 2008 4:28 PM)

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