New Yorkers Resigned to Supporting Bloomberg for Mayor

Michael Bloomberg may be the only mayoral candidate it makes any sense for New Yorkers to vote for, but they're not doing it without grumbling, the Washington Post reports. Bloomberg leads his primary opponent, the hardly known and under-funded Democrat Bill Thomson, by double digits in the polls, prompting "Daily Show" host Jon Stewart to joke that is is "running unopposed." But even among his supporters, voters are queasy about the sums he has spent to remain in office -- $250 million over three campaigns, the most of any American politician in history -- and his abrupt change of the law to permit himself a third term.

Despite their misgivings, however, most New Yorkers say they trust Bloomberg to fix the economy and govern the city. His progressive efforts to improve quality of life -- banning smoking anywhere he can, forcing fast-food restaurants to display calorie counts, turning busy sections of Broadway into a pedestrian plaza -- are popular. Bloomberg has been criticized for failing to reduce homelessness, for massive rezoning that allowed developers to wreak havoc on affordable housing, and for using his bank account to short-circuit the democratic process.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2009, NYC Edition