Race looks ripe for runoff 

BY MICHAEL SAUL
DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU

Democratic mayoral hopeful Anthony Weiner appears to be gaining ground in his quest to force a runoff with front-runner Fernando Ferrer, a new poll revealed yesterday.

Among Democrats who are likely to vote next Tuesday, Ferrer continued to lead the pack with 33% of the vote, the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion poll showed.

But it's Weiner, arguably the least-known of the four candidates vying for the Democratic nomination, who seems to be rising, securing 20% of the vote in the poll.

City Council Speaker Gifford Miller followed, with 17%, and Manhattan Borough President Virginia Fields trailed, with 14%.

The primary, though, remains wide open, with 16% of likely voters reporting they're undecided.

A second-place finish in the primary is crucial because if no candidate secures 40% of the vote, a runoff between the two top vote-getters will take place two weeks later.

"I always thought that if people got a chance to tune in to my message, hear what I have to say, that I was going to do well," said Weiner while marching in the West Indian American Day Carnival Parade.

"Look, I can't say the polls mean nothing when I'm in fourth and then think they're a big deal when I'm in second, but I'm clearly moving up while the others aren't," Weiner said. "So, that's got to be a good sign in any campaign."

Among registered Democrats, Weiner has gained 5 points since June, while Fields plunged 11 points and Ferrer fell 6 points in the same period. Miller climbed 2 points.

Lee Miringoff, who heads the polling institute, said: "Weiner's numbers have improved, but it's still a close race for second."

The poll shows Mayor Bloomberg continues to dominate his Democratic rivals. The poll revealed 42% of registered Democratic voters would pull the lever for Bloomberg if he were running as a Democrat.

And regardless of the candidate they support, 76% of Democrats believe Bloomberg will win reelection.

City Controller William Thompson, who marched with Ferrer at the parade, said he thinks the former Bronx borough president could still win the primary outright.

"People are starting to focus now," said Thompson, a leading Democratic contender for mayor in 2009 if Bloomberg wins reelection.

"So, I'm enthusiastic and very hopeful that next Tuesday Freddy is going to win the primary with 40%," he said. "Everybody else is so tightly bunched - you just don't know who's going to emerge."

The poll, conducted Aug. 29 through Sept. 2, has a margin of error of plus or minus 5.5 percentage points.