Politics on the Hudson

Gov. Paterson has quietly launched his new campaign website, which he mentioned to the Huffington Post yesterday as he told them he plans to run in 2010.

There’s a series of videos, including one where a commentator says “He just didn’t take over that day (on his inauguration), he took charge.”

And if the one on the home page is not a Jimmy Siegel-produced ad, the ad man that former Gov. Eliot Spitzer used during his 2006 run, it sure looks just like one.

And then there’s this pitch to get volunteers, “November 2010 might seem like a long ways off, but there’s too much at stake for New York to wait another day. Sign up to volunteer with Paterson for governor and make a difference today.”

Soon after taking over for Spitzer in March, Paterson has indicated plans to run for re-election in 2010.

The website, though, gives an idea of what his message to voters will be: He took charge after Spitzer resigned, steadied the state, preached fiscal conservatism and has worked to make New York one state—not divided by upstate and downstate.

It also may seek to preempt challengers from making an early move to run against him. There’s no clear sense that someone from within his party, such as Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, would run against him, and Paterson reiterated today that he’s been assured that Mayor Michael Bloomberg would not run for governor if his bid for a third term fails.

Of course, there’s the growing speculation that former Mayor Rudy Giuliani will run as the Republican candidate. Polls have shown that Giuliani leading Paterson in a hypothetical matchup.

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