Bloomberg for Mayor: The $100 Million Dollar Mayoral Campaign

The final numbers are in on the New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg's re-election spending. The New York Times says Mayor Bloomberg spent about $102,000,000 to get re-elected to a third term as mayor. That equals about $183 per vote.

Bloomberg is now top-spending self-financed politician in U.S. history. In previous campaigns he spent $85,000,000 and $74,000,000.

SOURCE:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34180267/ns/politics-more_politics/

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE5AR08320091128

Chuck Todd: Being independent is a positive for “many voters”

Today NBC’s Chuck Todd wrote a “briefing-column” on the major elections today. A key point in his column is that being an independent or Third Party candidate is a major plus to many voters.

He wrote, “We know that not being associated with either political party is a net plus with many voters — from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's expected victory, to Chris Daggett's influence in New Jersey, to Doug Hoffman's rise in New York's 23rd Congressional District.”

In a section titled “The angry independent” Todd wrote, “Candidates who stand up to the establishment and find a reform message will benefit, no matter their party label.”

SOURCE:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33591486/ns/politics-more_politics/

Poll shows Bloomberg safe…

Poll shows Bloomberg safe in polling numbers and favorable rating. A Marist University showed independent incumbent Mayor Michael Bloomberg had a 53-38% lead of over Democratic challenger New York City Comptroller Bill Thompson.

54% of people polled also said Mayor Bloomberg is doing an Excellent/Good job in office.

4% of voters said they will cast their vote for another candidate.

SOURCE:

http://www.pollster.com/blogs/nyc_bloomberg_53_thompson_38_m.php

http://maristpoll.marist.edu/wp-content/misc/nycpolls/c091026/Complete%20October%2030,%202009%20NYC%20Poll%20Release%20and%20Tables.pdf

New York Times calls for the incumbent…

New York Times calls for incumbent New York City independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg to be re-elected.

The editorial as reported by CNN.com said, “Mr. Bloomberg has been a first-rate steady hand during unsteady times… He guided the city out of the post-9/11 recession, then tucked away money during the boom years that followed. That foresight has helped New Yorkers weather one of the worst economic downturns in 80 years. Mayor Bloomberg has easily earned another four years."

CNN said the editorial was partly favorable to Democratic city Comptroller William Thompson who is running against Bloomberg, but was not fond of Thompson’s attacks on Bloomberg.

SOURCE:

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/10/24/the-new-york-times-endorses-bloomberg/

Bloomberg the Quarter-Billion dollar spending candidate….

The first paragraph of the story from Reuters says it all: “New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has spent more of his own money in pursuit of public office than any other individual in U.S. history, spending $85 million as of Friday on his latest reelection campaign, the New York Times reported on Saturday.”

The times article said Bloomberg is on pace to spend between $110 and $140 million of his own money prior to the November 3 mayoral election, spending more than a quarter billion dollars in his three bids for New York City Mayor.

SOURCE:

http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSTRE59N0K420091024

Bloomberg gaining by not moving...

Bloomberg gaining by not moving in a recent poll from Marist College Institute for Public Opinion incumbent independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg widened with Democratic challenger City Comptroller Bill Thompson. Bloomberg now has a 16% lead in the race for New York City Mayor.

Bloomberg’s numbers stayed the same, but Thompson’s numbers dropped from 43%to 36%.

Seven percent of voters said they will be voting for somebody else.

SOURCE:

http://maristpoll.marist.edu/wp-content/misc/nycpolls/c091019/Bloomberg/Complete%20October%2022,%202009%20NYC%20Poll%20Release%20and%20Tables.pdf

Challenger closing on Bloomberg…

Democratic Challenger Bill Thompson is closing on Incumbent independent Mayor Mike Bloomberg in a new poll from Survey USA. The poll shows New York City Comptroller Bill Thompson now only 12% back from the independent Incumbent. The good news for Bloomberg is that the poll still shows Bloomberg above the 50% mark, but only sitting at 53%.

Across the entire city Mayor Bloomberg is crushing Comptroller Thompson in voters over fifty years old (the ones who vote). But the polls are starting to break by region of New York City. Comptroller Thompson has taken a lead in Brooklyn and the Bronx, polling over 50% in both boroughs. But, in the other boroughs of Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island Mayor Bloomberg has a dominating 60+% lead. This race may be closer than expected, but Mayor Bloomberg still appears that he will come-up the winner even if every undecided breaks for Comptroller Thompson.

With this races apparently in hand, will Mayor Bloomberg endorse anybody in the New Jersey Gubernatorial race?

SOURCE:

http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReport.aspx?g=b8c3dab8-ce92-431d-ba89-521f01ad55a9

Bloomberg staffer rips Corzine, Independent endorsement to come?

A staffer for New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg rips Democratic Incumber Governor Jon Corzine. Does this mean an endorsement of Independent Gubernatorial candidate Chris Daggett could be coming?

An adviser to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg was quoted in New York magazine ripping on New Jersey Incumbent Governor Jon Corzine who’s running for re-election.

Kevin Sheeky was quoted saying, “Look at Mike Bloomberg and Jon Corzine. Very similar backgrounds, very similar people. Both came into office spending a lot of money, okay? And one of them has been very successful, and one has generally been very unsuccessful, both in competitive environments. Why is that? I would argue it's because one turned out to be really good at his job, and is surrounded by really good people, and he's used persuasion to move things forward. If Mike Bloomberg were unsuccessful, he'd be a one-term mayor."

Could this be the latest trial balloon leading to a Mayor Bloomberg endorsement for fellow-independent Chris Daggett. A Bloomberg adviser was earlier quoted as saying “Nothing ruled in or out" when asked if Daggett could be endorsed by Mayor Bloomberg. It surely seems a Corzine endorsement could now be ruled out.

SOURCE:

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2009/10/19/no_bloomberg_endorsement_of_corzine.html

http://nymag.com/news/politics/60161/index4.html

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2009/10/16/bloomberg_considering_new_jersey_endorsement.html

Could Independent Mayor Bloomberg back Independent for NJ Governor?

Could Independent Mayor Bloomberg back Independent for NJ Governor? Ben Smith writes on Politico.com, “Asked if it was possible for Bloomberg to come out for Daggett, the mayor's adviser repeated: ‘Nothing ruled in or out.’”

Smith wrote supporters of both Democratic Incumbent Governor Jon Corzine and Republican challenger Chris Christie have asked for a Bloomberg endorsement. So what would endorsement would make the biggest difference? Smith argued, “…it's not the major party candidates that would receive the biggest boost from (Bloomberg)… it's Chris Daggett, the independent candidate in New Jersey… Popular and well-known in the Garden State's New York suburbs, Bloomberg is the sort of well-known figure who could lend a timely measure of credibility to Daggett's uphill and underfunded campaign.”

Could an independent endorse and independent? Why not?

SOURCE:

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/1009/A_Bloomberg_endorsement_in_NJ.html?showall

Could the Democratic candidate for NYC Mayor “pull a Daggett” on Bloomberg in debate?

Independent candidate and incumbent New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is running with lead for re-elections. Most polls show Bloomberg with a lead in the double digits versus Democratic candidate and City Comptroller Bill Thompson.

In fact many people have said this race is all but over, but today the New York Times “City Room” blog says that may not be true. The mayor and the comptroller debate on Tuesday and that debate could swing the race into a whole new light.

The New York Times writers Michael Barbaro and David W. Chen argue Independent Mayor Bloomberg could have a “Daggett” pulled on him.

It would be a major reversal of who is running as an independent, but Barbaro and Chen write, “Mr. Thompson needs to deliver a strong performance to overcome both a sizable gap in the polls and a lopsided disadvantage in financial resources against the billionaire mayor. After all, it was a sterling debate performance by Christopher J. Daggett, an independent running for governor in New Jersey, that suddenly raised his profile and helped him earn the surprising endorsement of the state’s largest newspaper, The Star-Ledger of Newark.”

So can Thompson “pull a Daggett”? We’ll see tomorrow night.

SOURCE:

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/todays-tip-sheet-bloomberg-and-thompson-march-for-votes/

Was that an endorsement or just being nice?

Was that an endorsement or just being nice? It’s a question from Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire. The headline for one of their stories was, “Gore Endorses Bloomberg?”

The article quotes former Vice President Al Gore talking about Incumbent Independent New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Bloomberg is up for re-election in less than two months. The city’s Democrats recently endorsed New York City Comptroller William Thompson.

The former Vice President said, “…I'm proud to endorse the leadership and the actions the Mayor Bloomberg has been taking for quite a long time on (the environment) and this is just another example of that… I try to stay out of the partisan races, but I'm very proud of Mike Bloomberg's leadership, I really am. I'm not just saying it… (Mike Bloomberg’s leadership) is the real deal."

So was that an endorsement of the candidate, or just the candidate’s work?

SOURCE:

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2009/09/24/gore_endorses_bloomberg.html

Bloom on the Bloomberg campaign…

Bloom on the Bloomberg campaign after a new Quinnipiac University poll. A poll on the New York City Mayoral election of likely voters shows Incumbent Independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg getting 52% of the vote.

The Democratic candidate, New York City Comptroller William Thompson, is showing 36% in the poll. Conservative Party candidate Stephen Christopher was firmly in the single didgets polling at 1%. Nine percent of the voters are still undecided.

Bloomberg showed popularity across the entire city, polling at or above 47% in every borough.

SOURCE:

http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1302.xml?ReleaseID=1376