NEW YORK − Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has gained 10 points on Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani in the race for New York City mayor, but he still trails the 33-year-old state Assembly member by double digits, according to a new poll.

The Quinnipiac University poll, released Oct. 9, came just over a week after Mayor Eric Adams dropped his re-election bid. Likely New York City voters − with over 1,000 polled in early October — had mostly made up their minds on the candidates ahead of the Nov. 4 election.

While Mamdani, a democratic socialist, leads with 46% of likely voters, Cuomo, running as an independent, increased his support to 33%, up from 23% in Quinnipiac’s poll in September, before Adams had dropped out. Cuomo and Adams are both registered Democrats who secured independent ballot lines. Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa held steady at 15% in the latest poll.

The results showed Mamdani, a democratic socialist who would be the city's first Muslim mayor and its first Asian American mayor, gained just a percentage point from the Sept. 10 poll. But he is still 13 points clear of Cuomo.

“The numbers changed but the contours of the race haven’t,” Mary Snow, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll, said in a statement. Cuomo picked up Adams’ supporters, Snow said, “but Mamdani's frontrunner status by double digits stays intact.”

The poll released nearly a month from Election Day and just over two weeks before early voting begins. In the June Democratic primary, Mamdani trailed Cuomo for much of the race. Mamdani closed the gap in the final days before a decisive victory to clinch the critical nomination in an overwhelmingly Democratic city.

Cuomo’s campaign quickly seized on the poll, saying in a statement the “race is shifting decisively."

“The path is now clear: This is a two-person race between Andrew Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani,” Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said. "As voters learn more about the stakes and Cuomo’s record of results — rebuilding LaGuardia, revitalizing the MTA, expanding affordable housing, and keeping New York safe — they are rallying behind proven leadership.

Nearly three-quarters of likely voters said Cuomo had the right kind of experience to be mayor, the poll found, compared to less than 40% for Mamdani, who was first elected to the state Legislature in 2020.

In a statement, Dora Pekec, a Mamdani campaign spokesperson, pointed to “genuine enthusiasm” for his campaign, supported by thousands of volunteers against billionaires propping up Cuomo in “last-ditched efforts.”

The poll found about 90% of likely Mamdani voters were very or somewhat enthusiastic about their candidate, compared to 69% of likely Cuomo voters saying they were very or somewhat enthusiastic about him.

“Zohran is meeting voters every day in all five boroughs, who are ready to turn the page on the broken politics of the past and build a city everyone can afford,” Pekec said.

Hurdles remain for Cuomo

Over half of respondents said they had an unfavorable opinion of Cuomo. About the same number of respondents, 54%, said Cuomo was not ethical. In 2021, Cuomo resigned as governor in disgrace amid sexual harassment allegations, which he has denied, and condemnation for his management of nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Another hurdle may be that Adams, who dropped out of the race on Sept. 28, will remain on the ballot as an independent candidate, even if he’s not seeking re-election.

Nearly half of respondents said Mamdani could lower housing costs, compared to just a quarter for Cuomo. Cuomo had an advantage to Mamdani in voters seeing him as growing the city’s economy, at 41% to 35%, respectively.

The poll also asked voters about President Donald Trump. Voters were split on whether Mamdani or Cuomo would be best to represent New York City’s interests with the White House.

Snow, of Quinnipiac, said both Democrats have tried to make the case that they’d best protect New York City against Trump, but voters don’t see much of a difference between them on that front.

Sliwa, the founder of the Guardian Angels anti-crime vigilante group, said in a statement that the only poll that mattered is the one on Election Day.

Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at emcuevas1@usatoday.com or on Signal at emcuevas.01.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: With Adams out, Cuomo gains ground in NYC mayor's race. But Mamdani still leads.

Reporting by Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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