Olson on Newsmax: Key 2025 Elections in VA, NJ, and NYC
Oct 24, 2025Byline: American Pulse Staff
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Dustin Olson, lead pollster for American Pulse Research & Polling, joined Newsmax’s Wake Up America to discuss key 2025 elections in Virginia, New Jersey, and New York City. Olson broke down how these high-stakes off-year contests are not perfectly following historic trends.
Off-Year Elections Defying the Usual Pattern
Olson noted that off-year elections typically favor the party out of power—but what’s happening in these deep-blue areas is noticeably different.
“It's interesting—in these off-year elections, you’d expect blue states like New Jersey and Virginia, and the extremely blue New York City, to vote for the Democratic candidates in big numbers, because we have a Republican in the White House. But in each of these races, we don't see that.”
According to Olson, the fact that competitive races are emerging in states and cities that should be safely Democratic suggests a broader political realignment taking place across the country.
NYC Mayoral Race: Voters Pushing Back Against Extremism
In New York City, Olson said voters are clearly uneasy with Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani’s far-left agenda. A majority of New Yorkers, he explained, are opposing Mamdani and the conversation about the race revolves around how to stop the official Democratic nominee for mayor.
“In New York City, really, if you could put together the Cuomo vote, the Sliwa vote, the other vote, they actually have more support. And most people—even in New York City—think Mamdani is too extreme for that city.”
Polling from American Pulse has shown that nearly half of New Yorkers believe Mamdani’s views are too extreme for their city, with strong opposition across a wide range of issues.
Virginia and New Jersey: Races Tighten as Scandals Emerge
In both Virginia and New Jersey, Democrats should be running up the score—but instead, their leads have narrowed sharply. Olson pointed to the Jay Jones scandal in Virginia as one of the biggest factors reshaping the race.
“A lot of people were already voting before they knew about that situation, but it's definitely going to be closer than it should be. It's amazing to think of voting for someone who’s ever said that. You’d expect Democrats in the state and across the country to call on him to drop out and pull their endorsements, but they seem to have circled the wagons.”
The controversy, which involved violent text messages from the Democrat attorney general nominee, has rippled across the Commonwealth—affecting not only the AG’s race but also the governor’s race led by Abigail Spanberger.
“It’s having an impact. That race [attorney general], in some polling, has flipped, and it's also affecting the governor’s race. Spanberger, in my opinion, hasn’t handled it well, so it’s going to make that race closer as well. If it’s a single-digit race, as John said, and I think it will be, it actually bodes well for Republicans going into the midterms.”
Big Picture: A Warning Sign for Democrats
Olson concluded that these off-year elections are sending an unmistakable signal about voter sentiment heading into 2026. Competitive races in places like New York City, Virginia, and New Jersey indicate growing frustration with Democrat leadership—even in their own strongholds.
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