Safety 1st! NYers want a crime fighter

Former NYPD Capt. Eric Adams still holds a substantial lead in the mayoral race as safety continues to be the most important issue to about half of Democratic primary voters, according to a new poll.

The Brooklyn borough president is the first choice of 28 percent of Democratic voters, followed by Andrew Yang at 20 percent, former Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia with 15 percent and former City Hall lawyer Maya Wiley in fourth with 13 percent, according to an NY1/ Ipsos survey released Monday, the day before the primary.

The poll of 2,924 New York City residents, conducted from June 10 through June 17, shows Adams beating Yang 56 percent to 44 percent in the seventh round of a ranked-choice voting stimulation.

Adams is most trusted by voters to combat crime, which is the “main problem” New York City faces for 55 percent of likely Democratic voters.

“Crime and safety is increasingly seen as the number one issue by New Yorkers, currently with over half of likely voters selecting it as one of their top issues,” reads a release accompanying the new poll.

According to the survey, Adams is trusted to best address crime and public safety by 39 percent of

likely Democratic voters — 24 percentage points more than Yang — while 13 percent of respondents say they don’t know who’d most effectively combat crime.

Adams’ issue-based numbers are higher than Yang’s by a slimmer margin among likely primary voters on homelessness, stopping the spread of COVID-19, reopening the economy and education.

In the back of the pack, Comptroller Scott Stringer held steady with 8 percent of first-choice votes, ex-HUD chief Shaun Donovan with 5 percent, and former Citigroup exec Ray McGuire and nonprofit executive Dianne Morales slipping to 1 percent.