Casey Seiler is reporting at Capitol Confidential a new Siena Research Institute poll finds voters divided over whether the Common Core educational standards are too demanding, not demanding enough or about right, and whether they help to prepare students for the adult world. But those surveyed overwhelmingly said they would rather have the state Education Department setting educational policy than Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, 62 to 21 percent. And while New Yorkers strongly support universal pre-K, the majority of those surveyed say they would prefer new state education funding be used to support existing public school programs, over pre-K. The governor’s ratings took a slight dip since the last poll; however, in head-to-head match-ups, Cuomo continues to lead Rob Astorino by 42 points and Donald Trump by 44 points. This Siena College poll was conducted Feb. 16-20, 2014 by telephone calls to 802 New York State registered voters. Read the full post at Capitol Confidential, a Times Union blog.