|
Giuliani loses New York lead
22/01/2008 10:48 - (SA)
New York - Former mayor Rudolph Giuliani has lost the lead in his home state among Republican candidates for the US presidential election, a new poll showed on Monday.
Giuliani, who in campaigning has played up his record steering the city in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, is trailing 12% behind Senator John McCain, a Vietnam war veteran, said the Siena Research Institute.
On Giuliani's home turf, McCain has turned round a previous 33-point deficit, surging to a 12-point lead in support for New York state's Republican primary on February 5, said the survey, which has a 7.4 point margin of error.
McCain has 36% support among Republicans state-wide to 24% for Giuliani. Giuliani led McCain 48 to 15% on December 10. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is now third on 10%, Siena said.
"While America's mayor still has strong support among New York City Republicans, he is getting beat by McCain in the suburbs and trounced upstate," Siena spokesperson Steven Greenberg said in a report.
The poll is a new setback for the struggling Giuliani, once a favourite who has also lost his lead among Republicans in national polls.
Giuliani faces a make-or-break primary in Florida on January 29 as he has played a high-risk strategy of focusing his campaign in the large state while ignoring the early nomination contests in states where he is not popular.
Clinton leads Democrats in New York
The poll by the research institute at Siena college in New York state gave former first lady Hillary Clinton a two-to-one lead among Democrats over her nearest challenger Barack Obama, 48% to 23%.
Former Senator John Edwards is third among Democrats, with 10%.
The Siena poll was conducted January 14-17 among 625 New York voters, including 311 registered Democrats and 174 registered Republicans. The margin of error was 5.6 points among Democrats and 7.4 among Republicans.
New York is among more than 20 states, including California, voting on "Super Tuesday" on February 5.
|
News
