Poll Bloomberg, helped by terror alert, extends lead

AP | 13 Oct 2005

Related: NYC Subway "Plot": Just Another Fake Terror Alert

Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg boosted his lead over his Democratic challenger, according to a poll released Wednesday, just days after he announced a possible terrorist threat to the city’s subways.

Bloomberg led Fernando Ferrer by 28 percentage points among likely New York City voters, or 60 percent to 32 percent, in the Quinnipiac University poll taken from Oct. 4 to Monday.

A Quinnipiac poll released three weeks earlier found the incumbent leading by 14 percentage points, or 52 percent to 38 percent.

The latest poll began questioning voters two days before Bloomberg appeared with Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and FBI officials Oct. 6 to announce the report of what they said was the most detailed threat against New York City since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

“At this stage of the game it’s an absolute blowout, partly because of the terrorist threats to the subway and the way he acted like a commander in chief,” said Maurice Carroll, director of the polling institute.

The police department sent swarms of extra officers into the subway system and New Yorkers were warned that their luggage, packages and baby strollers would be closely examined as they entered train stations. After four days of high alert, the officials announced Monday there was no clear evidence an attack would be carried out and scaled back the protection.

CNN and the New York Post, citing unnamed sources, reported that an informant in Iraq who had told U.S. authorities about the possible threat by al-Qaida later admitted he made it up. Bloomberg and police officials questioned those reports Tuesday.

Bloomberg, who is financing his own re-election with his multibillion dollar fortune, leads Ferrer among black voters and Democrats. Ferrer, who is of Puerto Rican descent, has a slight edge over the mayor with Latino voters.

The poll of 725 likely voters has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.