MANHATTAN (CN) - Three months after picking party nominees for federal office, New Yorkers return to the polls Thursday for an important round of state primary elections. Here’s a rundown of candidates vying for governor, attorney general and other big races in the state Legislature.
GOVERNOR
A Siena College poll of likely Democratic voters released Monday showed incumbent Governor Andrew Cuomo with a hugely comfortable 41-point lead over primary challenger Cynthia Nixon, 63 percent to 22 percent.
Cuomo’s favorability rating is 68 percent, according to the Siena poll, while actress and activist Nixon is at 41 percent. But Cuomo’s taking his opponent seriously: the governor spent well over $8 million in the last weeks before the campaign.
Addressing rumors of a possible 2020 presidential run, Cuomo said in his debate with Nixon last month that he would serve all four years if re-elected governor. He has already served two terms; the office has no term limits.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio still has not endorsed either candidate, though he has famously feuded with Cuomo for years and is an old friend of Nixon’s.
New York is considered a safely Democratic seat for governor and for statewide races generally. Whoever wins in September’s primaries will face GOP Duchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro on the ballot in November.
Because New York holds closed primaries, voters must be registered within the party to cast ballots for the Democrats today.
ATTORNEY GENERAL
Democrats running for state attorney general are Verizon lobbyist Leecia Eve, New York City Public Advocate Letitia James, current U.S. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney and Fordham law professor Zephyr Teachout.
As of Monday’s Siena poll, the race is too close to call, with Maloney at 25 percent, James at 24 and Teachout at 18 percent. Eve trails far behind at 3 percent. The other three candidates spent much of their debate last week attacking Teachout, suggesting they think she is a threat.
The candidates are vying to replace Barbara Underwood, a former deputy attorney general who rose into the top office in May after Eric Schneiderman resigned — driven out of Albany following reports that he had physically abused four female romantic partners.
One unusual feature of the race is that candidate Maloney is simultaneously running for re-election to U.S. Congress. Maloney promises that he has “a plan” to keep his congressional seat with Democrats in his right-leaning district, should he win Thursday.
If James wins, there’s likely to be a citywide special election to replace her as public advocate.
“[The attorney general race] comes down to two issues: who can bring undecided voters into their column and which campaign does a better job of turning out its supporters,” said Siena pollster Steven Greenberg in a statement.
Whoever wins the Democratic nomination will face Republican Keith Wofford in the November general election.
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR