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Weiner in Freefall After New Sexting Scandal, Poll Shows

 Former congressman and mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner.
Former congressman and mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner.
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DNAinfo.com/Colby Hamilton

NEW YORK CITY — Anthony Weiner might have "sexted himself right out" of the mayor's race, according to a new poll.

Weiner, who was once a frontrunner, has fallen to fourth place in the Democratic primary race for mayor, earning only 16 percent of likely primary voters in a new poll published Monday by Quinnipiac University. That's a 10-point drop from a survey taken just last week, before it was revealed Weiner had carried on online trysts with as many as three women after resigning from office in 2011.

This is the second poll since the scandal broke last week, and identifies a clear downward trajectory of support for Weiner in its wake.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn remains on top of the field at 27 percent, while Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and former comptroller Bill Thompson remain virtually tied at 21 and 20 percent, respectively.

John Liu, the current comptroller, continues to languish in single digits at 6 percent, only four points ahead of former City Councilman Sal Albanese.

“With six weeks to go, anything can happen, but it looks like former Congressman Anthony Weiner may have sexted himself right out of the race for New York City mayor,” Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a statement.

Weiner has continued to say he is leaving it up to the voters to decide what should happen with his campaign, and majority of those surveyed say he should pack it up. According to the poll, 53 percent over all believe Weiner should drop out, with 54 percent of women concurring. Nearly two-thirds of those polled said Weiner’s behavior is a legitimate issue in the campaign.

The survey was conducted from July 24 to 28 among 446 likely Democratic primary voters over ladlines and on cell phones, with a margin of error plus or minus 4.6 percent.