Hillary edges ahead in polls

Hillary Clinton meets commuters in New York

First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton has pulled ahead of New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani in their US Senate race for the first time in a year.

A CBS News/New York Times poll released on Friday showed that 49% of likely voters supported Mrs Clinton, compared to 41% for Mr Giuliani and 7% undecided.

Rudolph Giuliani: Lost support

Just over a month ago, the Republican mayor led his Democrat rival in every poll.

Mr Giuliani's public support foundered after last month's fatal police shooting of Patrick Dorismond, an unarmed black man.

The mayor released Mr Dorismond's sealed juvenile record, publicly criticised the victim, and did not offer condolences to his family.

In the poll, 56% said the mayor had made a tense situation worse, while 71% said he should not have released the dead man's record.

Losing ground

The mayor's support declined most notably among upstate voters.

Two months ago, he led Mrs Clinton 52% to 36% upstate - he now leads by just one percent. In New York City itself, Mrs Clinton leads three to one.

The survey of 1,573 voters conducted between 1-5 April has an overall margin of error of 3%.

Recent surveys had shown Mr Giuliani and Mrs Clinton in a statistical dead-heat.