(CNN) – On Election Eve in New York City, a new survey tells the same story: Democrat Bill de Blasio is the overwhelming front runner in the battle for mayor.
According to an NBC 4 New York/Wall Street Journal/Marist Poll released Monday morning, de Blasio has a 41-percentage point 65%-24% lead over Republican Joe Lhota among likely voters.
De Blasio, the city Public Advocate, has enjoyed the commanding lead virtually since he won the crowded Democratic primary in early September, edging out once-dueling frontrunners City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and scandal-plagued former Rep. Anthony Weiner.
Lhota, a businessman, deputy mayor under Republican Rudy Giuliani and former head of the New York City transit authority, has been unable to close the gap with attacks blasting de Blasio for a perceived lack of executive experience, being soft on crime and his seeming eagerness to tax the wealthy.
None of the attacks have stuck with voters, leaving de Blasio poised to be the first Democrat elected mayor of the heavily liberal-leaning city in nearly a quarter century. He's run by promoting the idea of a New Yorker split in two between the haves and have-nots, while attacking Lhota for "extreme" Republican ideology.
Nearly four-fifths of likely Democratic voters, 79%, plan on voting for de Blasio while just 14% say they'll support Lhota. Independent candidate Adolfo Carrion has just two percent of Democrats backing him compared to four percent of all city voters.
The Republican vote is virtually flipped, 71% supporting Lhota while 21% say they'll vote for de Blasio. More than two-thirds of New Yorkers are registered Democrats.
The winner will succeed outgoing three-term independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The survey was conducted October 29 through November 1, with 530 likely New York City voters questioned by telephone. The survey's sampling error for likely voters is plus or minus 4.3 percentage points.
