Mike Groll/AP
Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino will seek the Republican nomination to run against Gov. Cuomo.
ALBANY – Declaring that New York is “losing” under Gov. Cuomo, Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino announced Wednesday he will run for governor.
In a video released on his website, Astorino said he will seek the Republican nomination. He’ll face what even Republicans concede would be an uphill battle against Cuomo.
“I’m tired of listening to the fairytale that everything is just great when it’s just the opposite,” Astorino said.
Astirino painted a picture of a state that is among the worst in the nation when it comes to taxes, population loss and business climate.
And he portrayed Cuomo as presiding over a culture of corruption in Albany.
Cuomo has boasted that since taking office in 2011, state spending is under control, New Yorkers are paying less in taxes and the state ranks second in private sector job creation since the recession.
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Astorino, who won re-election in November in heavily Democratic Westchester County, is not impressed.
“I have a simple question for New Yorkers: as a state, are we winning or are we losing today,” Astorino said. “Because if New York is winning, re-elect Andrew Cuomo. But if New York is losing, and the evidence says that it is, we need to make a change.”
But Astorino may not have a clear path to the GOP nomination.
Tim Roske/AP
Donald Trump and Carl Paladino are other possible rivals for Cuomo’s office.
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While few expect Donald Trump to get in the race, bombastic Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino recently raised the possibility he might seek to run again if the billionaire developer doesn’t run.
“Rob can’t raise money and he has a bad name recognition problem,” said Paladino, who was trounced by Cuomo in 2010.
Astorino in November won election to a second-term as county executive, racking up an impressive win in a county that is heavily Democratic.
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He’s going to have to hope he can find that same magic now that he is running statewide. Polls show Astorino is little-known outside his home county and has $ 1 million in the bank compared to Cuomo’s $ 33.3 million.
Labor, anti-gun and women’s groups quickly lined up to blast Astorino’s record.
Astorino will begin a statewide swing Thursday with a stop in the Democrat-heavy Bronx.
Fluent in Spanish, Astorino has previously vowed to reach out to Hispanics and other communities not traditionally aligned with the Republican party.
Assembly Democratic Speaker Sheldon Silver seemingly took a swipe at Astorino by mistating his first name as “Bob”, not “Rob.”
“I really don’t know Bob Astorino at all,” Silver said.
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