Poll: Plurality of New Yorkers support legal prostitution

A new poll found that more New Yorkers are in favor of legalizing prostitution than those who think it should be a crime – an issue that’s divided candidates in the New York City mayoral race.

About 44% of respondents said they think prostitution between consenting adults should be legal, while 33% said they think it should be a crime, according to the survey, which was conducted by Public Policy Polling for national advocacy organization Decriminalize Sex Work.

Another 24% of respondents said they were not sure. 

A quarter of New Yorkers surveyed also said they knew someone who had purchased sex. And 18% of New Yorkers said they knew someone who had sold sex. The poll had a 4.2-point margin of error.

Also looking at support for the mayoral candidates, the survey found Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani leading the pack with 39% – a solid lead, albeit several percentage points below other recent polls. The survey was shared exclusively with City & State this week ahead of its release.

The survey of 556 registered New York City voters was conducted between Sept. 4 and 5 – several weeks after mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Eric Adams blasted Mamdani for pushing to decriminalize sex work during his time in the Assembly. While it also asked respondents about the mayoral candidates and the Trump administration’s performance, the poll was conducted specifically to take voters’ pulse as rhetoric intensifies around the issue.

Debate about decriminalizing sex work and the best ways to best protect sex workers has long circulated in New York City. Potential legislative approaches have varied, ranging from full decriminalization for both buyers and sellers to only criminalizing it for buyers. Many advocates have called for full decriminalization, arguing that criminalization endangers trafficking victims and sex workers because it makes them less likely to seek help given the threat of potential law enforcement involvement. 

The poll also found that 51% of respondents opposed the idea of legislation that would make it legal for adults to sell sexual services, but buying sexual services would still be illegal. Just 10% said they supported the measure. Another 39% said they weren’t sure.

“New Yorkers are increasingly ready to move away from criminalization and toward a more compassionate and pragmatic approach,” said Melissa Broudo, legal director at Decriminalize Sex Work. “Decriminalization not only protects sex workers from exploitation and abuse, but also allows law enforcement to focus on real threats to public safety.”

Critics like the National Organization of Women have argued that decriminalization would fuel human trafficking and sex tourism while also compounding other social issues like drug sales, violence and gang activity. “Democratic socialists will say that legalizing the sex trade will provide not only safety, but dignity to these women who are repeatedly bought by nameless men,” National Organization of Women Executive Director Sonia Ossorio wrote, slamming Mamdani in a recent op-ed published in the Daily News. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”

Despite running on the issue during his 2020 Assembly bid and co-sponsoring legislation that would decriminalize sex work, Mamdani hasn’t emphasized the issue in his mayoral campaign. He’s also vaguely suggested that he wouldn’t prioritize it as mayor and said he supports former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s positioning on focusing on arresting sex traffickers while offering support services to sex workers. 

Cuomo meanwhile has attacked Mamdani over his support for decriminalizing prostitution, visiting businesses along the Roosevelt Avenue corridor in Jackson Heights, Queens last month – a hotspot for sex workers – and declaring he’d encourage law enforcement to go after sex traffickers as mayor. (The former governor previously supported legislation to walk back aspects of anti-prostition enforcement in 2021.) Adams too decried Mamdani’s support for the issue last month, citing objections on religious grounds. 

Roughly 69% of the survey’s respondents said they were a registered Democrat, 13% said they were registered with the Republican Party, 4% said they were with the Working Families Party, and 1% with the Conservative Party. The remaining 13% said they were an independent or part of a different political party.