Chad Arnold

Albany Bureau

ALBANY - The race is tight in New York's 19th Congressional District, according to a poll Wednesday by Monmouth University.

Democratic challenger Antonio Delgado has a slight lead — 45 percent to 43 percent —over incumbent Rep. John Faso, R-Kinderhook, Columbia County, the poll from the New Jersey college said. It had a 4.9 percent margin of error.

The Monmouth poll was consistent with a Siena College Research Institute poll last month. That poll found Faso with a small edge, leading Delgado 45 percent to 40 percent.

The race is considered one of the more closely watched in the nation as Faso seeks a second term in a moderate Hudson Valley district that stretches from Dutchess County and into the Albany area and Southern Tier.

"While Delgado has a 13-point lead in Dutchess and Ulster Counties, Faso has even bigger leads in both the Southern Tier and Capital Region portions of this sprawling district,” Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg said in a statement.

The Siena poll had a 4.8 percent margin of error and did not include the Green Party candidate. It was conducted Aug. 20-26 to 501 likely voters in the district.

The Monmouth poll did include Green Party candidate Steven Greenfield, who received 1 percent of the support. It was conducted Sept. 6-10, 2018 to 401 voters.

Monmouth's poll, like the Siena poll, showed a narrow race in portions of the district east of the Hudson River with Delgado and Faso split at 46 and 45 percent, respectively.

In Sullivan and Ulster counties, Delgado, an attorney, led 51 percent to 34 percent, whereas Faso led by the same margin in the western portions of the district.

The poll showed 48 percent of voters in the district approved of the Trump administration compared to 47 who disapproved.

Faso has supported some of the White House's policies, such as voting in favor of the American Health Care Act, which would have replaced the Affordable Care Act.

But he voted against the federal tax reform plan last December, saying it would hurt his district.

More:Delgado focusing on issues rather than rap past

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