Governor or Senator, Giuliani Is Likely to Win

When former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani dropped out of the U.S. presidential race last year, his fall had been somewhat spectacular. In the summer of 2007 it looked like he would face Hillary Clinton in the end, but all that changed. Republican voters were looking for a truly conservative alternative to Clinton or Barack Obama and Giuliani did not meet their expectations, even though he tried his darndest. He also had previous demons to contend with; in 2000 he had dropped out of a bid for a U.S. Senate seat because of multiple problems, including his messy private life. But no one seriously believes that Giuliani isn’t looking for the next influential public office he can lay his hands on and next year he has two options – either run for Governor of New York or for the same Senate seat he abandoned nine years ago. In the gubernatorial election he would face David Paterson, the current Democratic Governor; in the senatorial election he would face Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand who replaced Hillary Clinton when she was appointed Secretary of State last year. Some polls indicate that Giuliani might win either election.

Life is complicated and that applies to New York politics as well. Paterson will likely face a primary challenge from the New York Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo, who in one poll would crush Rudy Giuliani. So, the former Mayor had better hope that Paterson somehow manages to cling to his job. As for the Senate seat, Giuliani’s only real Republican primary challenge was Representative Peter King, but he has declared himself unavailable. God knows Giuliani is at least a more respectable and sensible Republican than King. Ironically enough, Giuliani looks more likely to win the senatorial election (even though he has once abandoned the contest for that seat) than the gubernatorial one… provided that Cuomo wins the nomination.

The YouTube clip shows one of Rudy’s ads from last year.

politik usa politics

Published 2009-11-19 19:10

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