Irritation at Bloomberg’s dallyingEven as Michael Bloomberg, New York’s mayor, conducts sophisticated polls assessing his chances in an independent campaign, some in the city he leads are growing impatient with his drawn-out flirtation with a bid for the US presidency.
A poll this week showed that 62 per cent of New Yorkers believed Mr Bloomberg was “morally obligated” to serve out the rest of his mayoral term, which ends in January 2010.
“We elected you for a four-year second term and you have an obligation to serve the whole four years” was the message from New Yorkers, said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University-sponsored poll.
In an editorial this week Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post, which has generally supported Mr Bloomberg, urged him to make up his mind quickly.
Mr Bloomberg has stirred speculation about his bid by making ever more frequent trips out of New York. His presence this week at a bipartisan forum in Oklahoma helped keep him in the national spotlight even as voters went to the polls in the New Hampshire primary.
But in New York there is a growing sense the mayor should stick closer to home, particularly given the concerns about how a weaker year on Wall Street could affect the local economy.
The Quinnipiac poll found most New Yorkers believed Mr Bloomberg would run for president and, while his approval rating is high at 73 per cent, most say they will not vote for him.
But he is unlikely to bow to the pressure at home. Political analysts say they do not expect Mr Bloomberg to announce a bid until after the February 5 primaries, in which 20 states will vote.
He may wait even longer, until after the results of the Texas primary on March 4, to survey the field of nominees and assess their vulnerability in the general election.
With a practically unlimited war chest – he is believed to be prepared to spend up to $1bn (€676m, £511m) of his fortune on a run – Mr Bloomberg’s supporters say he believes he can afford to wait.
Until then, Mr Bloomberg is conducting detailed – and expensive – polls in all 50 states to determine the appetite for a third-party bid, as well as how his views mesh with those of the voters.
Unsurprisingly for someone who built a media empire by providing specialised data to financial traders, Mr Bloomberg used sophisticated polling techniques in his cam- paigns for mayor that provided a highly detailed picture of the New York electorate.
Doug Schoen, whose polling company created the system used in those campaigns, said on Friday that Mr Bloomberg was using the polls to make a “hard-headed assessment” of his chances.
“As a CEO, he was used to getting the most sophisticated data available,” said Mr Schoen, who is not currently working for Mr Bloomberg.
No comments:
Post a Comment