AFP

New York

Democratic Party candidate Bill de Blasio is on track to win a historic victory as mayor of New York next week, according to a new poll published yesterday.

The New York Times/Siena College poll predicted de Blasio was certain to win the November 5 election, handing him a 45-point lead over his Republican rival Joe Lhota.

A staggering 87% said they expected de Blasio, a 52-year-old public advocate, to win.

Sixty-eight per cent said they would vote for him, compared to only 23% for the less charismatic Lhota, a former chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Nothing seems capable of preventing the election of a man who was relatively unknown until bursting into the race and winning the Democratic primary in September.

In 1985, Democrat Edward Koch won a third term with a 68-point lead over his rival, but a first-time candidate has never won by more than 40 points, the Times said.

De Blasio’s politics are staunchly to the left in the US, and he has campaigned against the widening gap between rich and poor in the city.

He promises to increase taxes on New Yorkers earning more than $500,000 to expand after-school programmes for middle school students and to create universal pre-kindergarten programs from the age of four.

He has also campaigned hard against stop-and-frisk - a police tactic loathed by minority communities who see themselves as unfairly targeted.

His African-American wife, Chirlane, an outspoken former lesbian, has featured prominently in his campaign. So have his 16-year-old son Dante and 18-year-old daughter Chiara.

The outgoing mayor Michael Bloomberg, 71, is one of the richest men in the world. He won his third term as an independent.

He steps down on December 31 after 12 years and has refused to endorse either candidate to replace him.