Tenant advocates hope that new polling shared with City & State will prompt New York politicians to prioritize housing affordability in 2026. Housing Justice For All and Data For Progress conducted a statewide poll to test how the electorate views housing policies, which found that 69% of respondents said they would be more likely to support a candidate who backed rent stabilization and 68% would be more likely to support a candidate who backed public investments in social housing.
The poll of 1067 New Yorkers was conducted from July 1 to July 11 and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points. It found that concerns about the cost of housing are prevalent throughout the state, with 26% of New Yorkers saying that they have considered leaving the state due to unaffordable housing costs, and 46% of respondents from Western New York and 43% of respondents from the Mid-Hudson region saying they have had to cut back on essentials to meet housing costs.
“Housing pain is being felt all across the state, not just in NYC and surrounding areas. It’s startling to see voters, particularly younger voters and voters of color, say they are cutting back on essentials like food and health care to afford housing. That’s a moral failure,” said Ryan O’Donnell, interim executive director at Data for Progress. “Voters clearly want to see our government invest more in affordable housing, limit rent hikes and hold greedy landlords accountable.”…