Poll Shows Hillary Clinton Leading Hypothetical Race for New York City Mayor

— -- It's far from likely that former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton will run for mayor of New York City next year, but a new poll from Quinnipiac University today shows she'd be a strong contender for the job.

The new poll shows the former secretary of state garnering 49 percent of the vote in an independent bid vs. only 30 percent for current Mayor Bill de Blasio. Most of the rest say they wouldn't vote or don't know who they would choose.

Clinton hasn't given any indication she plans to run for the top spot in the nation's most populous city after her failed bid for the White House in November. And while some have speculated that she could make a successful run for the mayor's office, many believe she isn't likely to run for public office again.

The poll shows Clinton leading Democrats by roughly 30 percentage points. She leads in all five boroughs except Staten Island. Roughly half of New York voters -- 49 percent -- say de Blasio does not deserve re-election vs. only 42 percent who say he does. His job approval sits at 45 percent.

And a poll of the Democratic primary race shows de Blasio at just 35 percent -- short of the 40 percent necessary to avoid a run-off election. Other candidates garnering noteworthy support include former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, City Comptroller Scott Stringer and U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries.

This poll from Quinnipiac University was taken from Jan. 11 to 17 and has a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points.