Looks like James’ career is at risk.
NY AG Letitia James is still ahead in her race for another term, but her advantage over Republican challenger Saritha Komatireddy has noticeably narrowed as Election Day gets closer.
A new Siena University poll released September 23 shows James leading Komatireddy 52% to 39% among likely New York voters.
That gives James a 13-point advantage — still substantial, but five points smaller than the 18-point margin she held in August, when Siena measured the race at 54% to 36%.
The change is drawing attention for another reason: a large majority of voters still know relatively little about James’ Republican opponent.
Letitia James’ Polling Lead Shrinks
The latest numbers represent a clear month-to-month narrowing in the NY attorney general race.
In August:
James: 54%
Komatireddy: 36%
In September:
James: 52%
Komatireddy: 39%
James therefore lost two percentage points while Komatireddy gained three.
However, the movement should be interpreted cautiously. Polls are snapshots rather than guarantees of what will happen on Election Day, and Siena’s September survey has a margin of error of roughly four percentage points.
James remains ahead by double digits.
Most New York Voters Still Don’t Know Komatireddy
Perhaps the most striking finding involves Komatireddy’s name recognition.
More than two-thirds of likely New York voters surveyed by Siena said they were either unfamiliar with the Republican challenger or lacked enough information to form an opinion about her.
Her favorability rating stands at 17% favorable and 12% unfavorable.
James, by comparison, is much better known statewide. Her rating in the September survey was 51% favorable and 40% unfavorable.
That presents Komatireddy with both a challenge and an opportunity.
With Election Day approaching, her campaign has limited time to introduce her to millions of voters. At the same time, because so many voters have not yet formed an opinion about her, her support could still change as more people become familiar with her background and campaign.
Independents Are Closely Divided
The statewide numbers also mask a much tighter contest among independent voters.
Siena found James leading Komatireddy among independents by just 43% to 40%.
Each candidate has the backing of more than 80% of voters within their own party.
James maintains her largest geographical advantage in New York City, where she leads 62% to 26%.
But that margin has also narrowed. In Siena’s August survey, James led in New York City by 71% to 20%.
The attorney general holds narrower advantages in upstate New York and the downstate suburbs.
Who Is Saritha Komatireddy?
Komatireddy is a former federal prosecutor with an extensive legal résumé.
She previously worked as an assistant U.S. attorney in New York’s Eastern District, where she took on leadership responsibilities in cases involving international drug trafficking, money laundering, criminal appeals, cybercrime, and national security.
From 2023 through 2024, she held the position of chief of staff at the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Komatireddy earned degrees from both Harvard College and Harvard Law School and later served as a law clerk to Brett Kavanaugh during his time on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
She has also argued more than a dozen cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and tried multiple federal criminal cases.
James Campaign Points To Her Record
James’ campaign argues that her continued double-digit advantage reflects voter confidence in her tenure as NY attorney general.
A campaign spokesperson told Fox News Digital that James’ support reflects her record pursuing criminal organizations, corporations and individuals accused of harming or defrauding New Yorkers.
The polling confirms that James continues to enjoy overwhelming support from Democratic voters.
The larger question heading into the final weeks is whether Komatireddy can increase her name recognition enough to make further gains among voters who have not yet formed an opinion about her.
James And Trump Have A Long History
James has become a nationally recognized political figure in large part because of her long-running legal battles with President Donald Trump.
Her office brought the civil fraud lawsuit against Trump, the Trump Organization and other defendants that resulted in a massive financial judgment following a 2024 trial.
The case later changed significantly on appeal.
In August 2025, a New York appeals court vacated the monetary disgorgement awards imposed against Trump and the other defendants while leaving other major portions of the judgment intact.
The litigation made James a prominent figure nationally and remains an important part of her political profile.
New York Governor’s Race Also Draws Attention
The attorney general contest is not the only statewide New York race receiving scrutiny.
The latest Siena poll shows Democratic Governor Hochul ahead of Republican Bruce Blakeman by a 50% to 41% margin.
That nine-point margin is similar to August, when Hochul led Blakeman 49% to 39%.
The results illustrate the broader political environment in New York heading into Election Day: Democrats retain advantages in the major statewide contests, while Republicans are attempting to narrow those margins.
Republicans Haven’t Forgotten 2022
New York Republicans have reason to pay close attention to statewide races.
The party came considerably closer than usual to capturing the governor’s office in 2022, when Republican Lee Zeldin challenged Hochul.
That election encouraged Republicans to devote more attention to New York, particularly suburban and upstate voters.
Whether that translates into stronger statewide results this year remains to be determined by voters.
One Poll Doesn’t Decide An Election
The most important caution surrounding the latest numbers is statistical.
James’ lead has narrowed by five points, though that shift should be viewed cautiously because Siena’s poll has a margin of error of about four percentage points.
That means it would be premature to conclude from a single survey that the race has undergone a dramatic transformation.
The clearest conclusions from the September poll are more limited:
James remains ahead by double digits.
Her advantage is smaller than it was in August.
Komatireddy remains unknown to more than two-thirds of likely voters.
Independent voters are much more closely divided than the statewide electorate.
Those factors make future polling particularly important as Election Day approaches.
For now, James remains the leader in the NY attorney general race. But with her margin shrinking from 18 points to 13 points in Siena’s latest survey — while her challenger remains unfamiliar to most voters — the final stretch of the campaign has given political observers new numbers to watch.
