Maurice Carroll, Director,

Quinnipiac University Polling

Institute
(203) 582-5334

Rubenstein Associates, Inc.

Public Relations
Contact: Pat Smith
FOR RELEASE: (212) 16,
MARCH 843-2011

MAYOR’S APPROVAL RATING AT LOWEST POINT IN 8 YEARS,

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY POLL FINDS;
BLOOMBERG’S TIME OFF IS NOBODY’S BUSINESS, VOTERS SAY
New York City voters disapprove 51 – 39 percent of the job Mayor Michael Bloomberg is doing,
his lowest score since a 51 – 37 percent disapproval November 23, 2003, according to a
Quinnipiac University poll released today.
Only Manhattan voters approve of Mayor Bloomberg’s job performance, 55 – 34 percent,
while disapproval in the other boroughs ranges from 49 – 35 percent in The Bronx to 66 – 27
percent on Staten Island, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds.
Republicans approve 47 – 42 percent, while disapproval is 52 – 39 percent among
Democrats and 51 – 40 percent among independent voters.
Bloomberg has the lowest score of any citywide elected. Other officials score their
highest approval ratings ever:
• 44 – 16 percent for Public Advocate Bill de Blasio;
• 54 – 16 percent for City Comptroller John Liu;
• 55 – 25 percent for City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly gets a 67 – 20 percent approval, including 57 – 27
percent among black voters. The new Schools Chancellor, Cathleen Black, gets a negative
17 – 49 percent approval rating, with 34 percent undecided.
New York City voters give President Barack Obama a 70 – 26 percent job approval.
“Is it the snow, the third-term blahs, the weekends away, the presidential chatter?
Whatever the explanation, Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s once-upon-a-time stretch of 70-plus job
approval numbers has gone south. This is his first negative number since 2003,” said Maurice
Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
“President Barack Obama’s job approval is inching up in a lot of places. In New York
City, it’s zooming. Starting with the lame-duck congressional session, he’s looking better.”
 -more-

Quinnipiac University Poll/March 16, 2011 – page 2

Rating the Bloomberg Administration’s overall handling of snow removal this winter:
• 2 percent say excellent;
• 26 percent say good;
• 31 percent say not so good;
• 38 percent say poor.
Mayor Bloomberg favors Manhattan over the other boroughs, voters say 70 – 22 percent.
Opinions range from 52 – 34 percent in Manhattan to 84 – 11 percent on Staten Island.
New York City voters say 72 – 25 percent that where the mayor goes on weekends or
vacations is a private matter and the public does not have a right to know. All groups support
this opinion by large margins. This is little changed from an 80 – 18 percent finding on this
question in a February 4, 2004, Quinnipiac University poll.
The media should not follow the mayor and report on his time-off activity, New York
City voters say 79 – 17 percent.
But when the mayor leaves the city, he should have to say who is in charge, voters say
84 – 13 percent. And voters say 72 – 26 percent that the mayor should report the whereabouts of
the person left in charge of the city.
By a 56 – 38 percent margin, New York City voters do not believe Bloomberg when he
says he is not interested in running for president. Voters say 74 – 18 percent that he would not
make a good president, his lowest score ever. The negative rating is shared by Republicans 70 –
25 percent, Democrats 75 – 17 percent and independent voters 74 – 21 percent.
But 67 percent of New York City voters say Bloomberg’s involvement in national issues
is good for the city, while 28 percent say his involvement distracts him from the day-to-day
business of running the city.
“Wherever Mayor Mike wants to fly away to is his business, New Yorkers say, just as
they said years ago. Leave him alone, they tell the press,” Carroll said. “But when the mayor’s
away, voters want to know who’s in charge – and where they are.”
From March 8 – 14, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,115 registered voters with a
margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones.
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public
opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and the
nation as a public service and for research.
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For more data or RSS feed– http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201, or
follow us on Twitter.

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1. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Michael Bloomberg is handling his job as Mayor?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 39% 47% 39% 40% 46% 30% 32% 26%

Disapprove 51 42 52 51 47 58 53 65
DK/NA 10 11 9 10 7 11 15 8

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 28% 35% 34% 55% 35% 27% 42% 36%

Disapprove 61 49 58 34 55 66 48 53
DK/NA 11 16 9 11 10 6 10 11

TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Michael Bloomberg is handling his job as
Mayor? (*High also 75% Oct 2008, Mar 2008, Jan 2007 & Nov 2005)

APPROVE....... DIS..
High Low High
Mar 16 Nov 23 Jun 30 May 21 Oct 21 Jul 02 Jul 02
2011 2010 2010 2010 2008* 2003 2003

Approve 39 55 57 57 75 31 31
Disapprove 51 35 33 29 20 60 60
DK/NA 10 11 10 14 6 8 8

2. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Ray Kelly is handling his job as Police
Commissioner?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 67% 78% 66% 69% 79% 57% 63% 66%

Disapprove 20 13 22 18 11 27 28 20
DK/NA 13 9 12 13 11 16 9 15

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 55% 57% 70% 69% 66% 74% 70% 65%

Disapprove 30 30 18 17 20 15 18 22
DK/NA 14 13 12 14 14 11 12 14

TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Ray Kelly is handling his job as Police
Commissioner? (*High also 70% Feb 2010, Mar 2006 & Feb 2006)

APPROVE....... DIS..
High Low High
Mar 16 Nov 23 Jun 30 May 24 May 24 Jan 16 Jan 16
2011 2010 2010 2010 2010* 2007 2007

Approve 67 67 66 70 70 52 52
Disapprove 20 19 20 17 17 34 34
DK/NA 13 14 14 13 13 14 14

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3. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Cathleen Black is handling her job as New York
City Schools Chancellor?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 17% 31% 14% 18% 19% 13% 17% 11%

Disapprove 49 32 52 52 42 56 57 61
DK/NA 34 37 33 31 38 32 25 28

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 18% 18% 17% 21% 14% 8% 22% 13%

Disapprove 53 48 52 37 53 56 41 55
DK/NA 29 33 31 41 32 36 37 32

4. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bill de Blasio is handling his job as Public
Advocate?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 44% 48% 49% 39% 41% 51% 49% 47%

Disapprove 16 19 13 20 14 16 16 15
DK/NA 40 32 38 40 45 34 35 38

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 41% 49% 52% 37% 39% 42% 42% 46%

Disapprove 26 16 16 14 18 12 16 16
DK/NA 33 35 33 49 43 46 42 39

TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bill de Blasio is handling his job as
Public Advocate?

Mar 16 Nov 23 Jun 30 May 21 Feb 17

2011 2010 2010 2010 2010

Approve 44 36 35 34 37
Disapprove 16 16 17 16 13
DK/NA 40 48 48 50 50

5. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Christine Quinn is handling her job as City
Council Speaker?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 55% 45% 64% 49% 52% 60% 55% 57%

Disapprove 25 37 17 30 28 23 21 28
DK/NA 20 18 19 21 20 17 24 15

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 54% 59% 56% 57% 50% 50% 47% 61%

Disapprove 27 24 25 23 28 30 33 19
DK/NA 19 17 19 21 23 19 21 20

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TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Christine Quinn is handling her job as
City Council Speaker?

APPROVE.......
High Low
Mar 16 Nov 23 Jun 30 May 21 Feb 17 Mar 16 Nov 25
2011 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2008

Approve 55 50 45 44 44 55 40
Disapprove 25 24 27 26 28 25 29
DK/NA 20 26 28 30 27 20 31

6. Do you approve or disapprove of the way John Liu is handling his job as City
Comptroller?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 54% 47% 59% 52% 51% 69% 56% 58%

Disapprove 16 20 14 17 14 10 17 13
DK/NA 30 34 28 31 34 21 27 29

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 54% 53% 62% 48% 52% 55% 54% 55%

Disapprove 19 16 13 16 19 14 17 15
DK/NA 28 31 25 36 29 31 29 31

TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way John Liu is handling his job as City
Comptroller?

Mar 16 Nov 23 Jun 30 May 21 Feb 17

2011 2010 2010 2010 2010

Approve 54 48 47 49 44
Disapprove 16 16 17 13 11
DK/NA 30 37 36 38 45

7. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Approve 70% 27% 87% 59% 56% 91% 79% 75%

Disapprove 26 69 10 38 41 6 18 23
DK/NA 4 4 3 3 3 3 3 2

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 76% 82% 68% 77% 62% 54% 66% 73%

Disapprove 17 12 30 19 33 44 30 23
DK/NA 7 6 2 5 5 2 3 4

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TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as
President?

Mar 16 Nov 23 Feb 17 Aug 26 Jul 28 Jun 16 Feb 25

2011 2010 2010 2009 2009 2009 2009

Approve 70 66 72 76 74 79 78
Disapprove 26 30 25 19 20 16 13
DK/NA 4 4 3 5 6 6 9

8. In general, how satisfied are you with the way things are going in New York City
today? Are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very
dissatisfied?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Very satisfied 5% 2% 4% 5% 6% 2% 4% 4%
Smwht satisfied 41 37 43 40 43 36 39 38
Smwht dissatisfied 33 35 33 35 32 33 31 35
Very dissatisfied 20 23 18 20 17 27 26 24
DK/NA 2 3 1 - 1 2 1 1

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Very satisfied 2% 5% 1% 11% 3% 2% 4% 5%

Smwht satisfied 40 38 39 51 37 37 44 39
Smwht dissatisfied 31 29 38 26 34 38 31 34
Very dissatisfied 26 26 20 11 26 22 19 22
DK/NA 2 2 3 1 1 1 2 1

TREND: In general, how satisfied are you with the way things are going in New York City
today? Are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very
dissatisfied?

VERY+SMWHT...
High Low
Mar 16 Nov 23 Jun 30 May 21 Feb 17 Feb 11 Jul 02
2011 2010 2010 2010 2010 1998 2003

Very satisfied 5 6 6 7 8 18 7
Smwht satisfied 41 44 43 44 51 58 23
Smwht dissatisfied 33 31 30 32 26 18 32
Very dissatisfied 20 19 20 16 14 5 38
DK/NA 2 1 1 1 1 1 1

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9. What do you think is the most important problem facing New York City today?

Tot

Economy Total 37%

Economy general 5
Unemployment/Jobs 26
Cost of living 4
Housing market/Real estate
values 1
Economy other 1

Education Total 21%

Education general 10
Teachers 3
Funding education 3
Teacher layoffs 1
Education other 4

Budget Total 12%

Budget general 4
Budget cuts/Cuts in
services 2
Budget deficits 3
Gov too big/Gov spending 1
Budget priorities 1
Budget other 1

Taxes Total 5%
Taxes general 3
Property tax 1
Taxes other 1

Mass Transit Total 5%

Quality mass transit/
Public transportation 3
Highway/Traffic congestion 1
Transportation other 1

Crime/Violence general 3%

Politicians Total 3%
Political corruption 1
Mayor/City leadership 2

Housing Total 3%
Housing general 1
Housing Costs/Availability 2

Police general 1
Poverty/Homeless 1
Class inequality 1
Healthcare/Costs/Ins/HMO's 1

Other 2
DK/NA 3

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10. Do you think Mayor Bloomberg would make a good President or not?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Yes 18% 25% 17% 21% 25% 13% 13% 13%

No 74 70 75 74 69 79 80 80
DK/NA 8 6 7 5 6 8 7 7

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes 16% 12% 17% 26% 16% 18% 21% 16%

No 78 80 79 65 72 80 72 76
DK/NA 5 8 4 9 12 2 7 8

TREND: Do you think Mayor Bloomberg would make a good President or not?

Mar 16 Nov 23 Mar 12 Jan 09

2011 2010 2008 2008

Yes 18 29 45 52
No 74 61 43 39
DK/NA 8 9 12 9

11. Michael Bloomberg says he is not interested in running for President. Do you believe
him or not?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Yes/Believe him 38% 43% 38% 40% 43% 30% 34% 32%
No 56 50 56 55 52 60 63 62
DK/NA 6 7 6 5 5 9 3 6

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes/Believe him 36% 31% 38% 43% 39% 30% 45% 33%
No 57 65 55 50 56 60 50 61
DK/NA 7 4 6 7 5 10 5 7

12. Do you think the public has a right to know where the Mayor goes on vacation or on
weekend trips, or is this a private matter?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Right to know 25% 17% 26% 27% 23% 33% 21% 30%
Private matter 72 78 72 70 75 63 76 68
DK/NA 3 5 2 3 2 4 3 3

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Right to know 24% 24% 26% 25% 25% 27% 26% 25%
Private matter 71 71 71 72 72 70 70 73
DK/NA 4 5 2 3 3 3 4 2

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TREND: Do you think the public has a right to know where the Mayor goes on vacation or on
weekend trips, or is this a private matter?

Mar 16 Feb 04 Mar 27

2011 2004 2002

Right to know 25 18 18
Private matter 72 80 79
DK/NA 3 2 3

13. Should the media follow and report on the Mayor when he goes on vacation or on
weekend trips, or is this a private matter?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Follow and report 17% 9% 18% 21% 15% 20% 18% 16%
Private matter 79 89 79 76 82 78 81 81
DK/NA 3 2 3 4 4 2 1 2

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Follow and report 17% 17% 19% 17% 16% 14% 20% 15%
Private matter 79 81 78 78 81 83 76 82
DK/NA 3 3 3 4 3 3 4 3

TREND: Should the media follow and report on the Mayor when he goes on vacation or on
weekend trips, or is this a private matter?

Mar 16 Mar 27
2011 2002

Follow & report 17 12

Private matter 79 86
DK/NA 3 2

14. When Mayor Bloomberg is out of the city, should he have to say who is in charge or
not?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Yes 84% 78% 87% 83% 83% 85% 91% 87%

No 13 19 11 14 15 13 8 11
DK/NA 2 3 2 2 3 3 1 2

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes 88% 84% 84% 78% 89% 91% 80% 88%

No 12 11 13 21 10 7 16 11
DK/NA - 5 4 1 1 2 4 1

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15. When Mayor Bloomberg is out of the city, should he have to say the whereabouts of who
is in charge or not?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Yes 72% 65% 73% 75% 70% 74% 81% 71%

No 26 32 25 22 28 25 18 27
DK/NA 3 2 2 3 3 1 2 2

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes 71% 75% 72% 66% 76% 71% 71% 73%

No 26 23 27 31 20 28 27 24
DK/NA 2 3 1 3 4 1 2 3

16. Do you think Mayor Bloomberg's involvement in national issues, such as immigration
reform and gun control is good for the city because these issues ultimately benefit New
Yorkers or do you think this involvement distracts him from the day to day business of
running the city?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Good for city 67% 61% 72% 63% 71% 65% 63% 68%
Distracts from city 28 32 25 31 24 29 35 29
DK/NA 5 7 3 6 5 6 2 4

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Good for city 57% 61% 65% 78% 62% 62% 67% 66%
Distracts from city 38 31 31 18 32 31 29 28
DK/NA 5 7 4 4 6 8 4 6

17. Do you think Mayor Bloomberg favors Manhattan over the outer boroughs or gives all
areas of the city equal attention?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Favors Manhattan 70% 65% 69% 73% 69% 74% 67% 77%
Equal attention 22 30 22 22 24 20 23 17
DK/NA 8 5 9 5 7 6 10 6

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Favors Manhattan 77% 71% 75% 52% 76% 84% 67% 72%
Equal attention 14 23 19 34 18 11 24 21
DK/NA 10 6 6 14 6 5 9 7

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TREND: Do you think Mayor Bloomberg favors Manhattan over the outer boroughs or gives all
areas of the city equal attention?

Mar 16 Jun 22
2011 2005

Favors Manhattan 70 62
Equal attention 22 30
DK/NA 8 8

18. Thinking about all of the snow storms this winter, how would you rate the job the
Bloomberg administration overall has done of snow removal: excellent, good, not so good,
or poor?

Union
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp HsHld

Excellent 2% 3% 2% 3% 3% 1% 2% 2%
Good 26 25 25 27 31 20 22 24
Not so good 31 29 33 31 29 35 28 31
Poor 38 41 38 39 36 43 47 40
DK/NA 2 2 2 - 1 1 1 2

HvKids
PubSch Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Excellent 1% 2% 1% 4% 1% 1% 2% 2%
Good 24 28 20 38 23 25 25 27
Not so good 25 27 31 34 33 29 31 32
Poor 49 42 46 22 41 45 40 37
DK/NA 2 1 3 2 1 1 2 2

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