In the most recent Siena, Marist, and Quinnipiac polls on the New York governor’s race, Kathy Hochul was holding comfortable leads. A poll conducted by Honan Strategy Group in New York City sought to find out why voters have made their decisions for either the Democratic incumbent Hochul or her Republican challenger, Bruce Blakeman.
Bradley Honan, president and CEO of Honan Strategy Group, says the AI Chatbot, known as Sage, was programmed to be empathetic, so rather than run down a list of questions it would instead ask follow-ups in a more conversational style.
“Sage conducted 179 interviews over two days, and showing the power of the ability of Sage to converse with people and to keep them engaged, Sage conducted conversations that were just shy of 15 minutes in duration,” Honan said. “So, there was a lot of staying power and a lot of engagement with these conversations, allowing us to get pretty deep.”
During a Monday morning online demonstration Honan showed an exchange between Sage and one of the poll’s respondents, a voter from the Bronx. Sage asked, “What's the biggest issue facing New York right now, and how it affects you?” The voter replied, “The Iran War because the cost pressure it has put on food and fuel.” Sage then responded, “How has that hit your household specifically? Are you feeling it more at the grocery store, the gas pump, or somewhere else?” The voter then responded that they do not drive an automobile, but they are concerned for home heating prices over the coming winter.
Affordability, immigration, child care, and public safety were among the issues of concern expressed by respondents. Honan during his presentation, did not present percentages of likely or already committed Hochul voters versus those who have or plan to vote for Blakeman. But the poll did reveal trends on both sides.
Those siding with Hochul indicated they were motivated in great part to oppose President Trump and candidates he is supporting this midterm election, including Blakeman.
Honan said many Blakeman supporters, meanwhile, didn’t necessarily know everything about the candidate, but they choose him out of a more anti-Hochul position.
“His voice has just not been heard more forcefully and loudly by a lot of voters. They simply don't understand very much about him, his profile, or the kinds of issues that he's working on,” Honan said. “He benefits with a small number of people that say he's not Governor Hochul, but they can't really name anything beyond him in terms of what he has accomplished.”
Blakeman, the current Nassau County Executive, was in Cheektowaga Monday morning joined by other top state candidates and influential Western New York Republicans at a “Fire Kathy Hochul” rally. The governor, meanwhile, focused her final days on the campaign trail on New York City, appearing at a Bills backers bar in Queens Sunday, and then headlining a rally featuring several prominent Democrats Monday evening.
