David Paterson to drop out of race for N.Y. governor

His announcement comes in the wake of a scandal involving a top aide. The former lawmaker and lieutenant governor took office after Eliot Spitzer resigned in disgrace.

By Geraldine Baum and Michael Muskal
February 26, 2010 | 10:03 a.m.

Reporting from Los Angeles and New York - David Paterson, who became governor of New York when his predecessor was forced to resign in disgrace, will not seek election this year, driven from office because of a scandal involving a top aide.

Paterson, whose almost two years in office were a whirlwind of crisis, will announce his withdrawal from the race at a news conference Friday afternoon.

A member of a prominent African American political family, he became governor in 2008 when former Gov. Eliot Spitzer quit in the midst a prostitution scandal. Once a popular state senator, Paterson as governor found himself caught up in the state's budget crisis and in a variety of personal and political problems.

As his popularity plummeted, challengers emerged, including state Atty. Gen. Andrew Cuomo, the son of former Gov. Mario Cuomo. With Paterson out of the race, Cuomo was expected to have a clear road to the Democratic nomination.

In a fiery speech directed as much at critics in his own party as to voters at large, Paterson just days ago announced his intention to run in November, but the final straw that drove him out of the race was a scandal involving his top aide, David Johnson.

The New York Times published several critical stories about Johnson's past. In the last story, questions were raised about the governor's role in dealing with a woman involved in a domestic dispute with the aide.

Court papers indicate that state police may have pressured the woman to not pursue criminal charges against Johnson. The newspaper also said Paterson spoke with the woman, although the governor's office said it was the woman who initiated contact.

The story fell like a match into the already incendiary world of New York politics. The younger Cuomo, long seen in party circles as the heir apparent, had already built a campaign fund that was five times larger than Paterson's and enjoyed a sizable lead in voter popularity making a primary battle a likely outcome.

The winner will face likely Republican candidate Rick Lazio, who had hoped to run against the weaker Paterson and a divided Democratic Party.

Those divisions could also have caused problems for New York's two senators, Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand, who was appointed by Paterson to fill the seat of Hillary Rodham Clinton after she became secretary of State. With a weak candidate for governor, both senators, but especially Gillibrand, faced tougher battles.

Paterson, who was so well liked as a legislator that he was chosen to run for lieutenant governor, had problems seemingly from March 17, 2008, when he took over from Spitzer. Early on amid media pressure, he held a news conference detailing past affairs he and his wife had when their marriage seemed doomed. He also acknowledged using drugs in the past.

Paterson was the state's first African American governor, but his relations with President Obama took a turn for the worse.

In 2009, Paterson said in a radio interview that he and other African American political leaders, including Obama, are treated unfairly by the media. The White House rejected that claim, and behind the scenes -- and at the request of New York politicians -- worked to convince Paterson to skip a run to keep the governor's seat in the November election.

The news of Obama's displeasure came just as the president was visiting upstate New York, where he was awkwardly greeted by Paterson at the airport.

"There has been a lot of back-and-forth in the past few months," Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine said in an interview on MSNBC on Friday. "He came into office under very, very difficult circumstances, but I respect his decision. The party will have to pull together to find another nominee."

geraldine.baum@latimes.com

michael.muskal@latimes.com

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and- ... 2450.story