Andrew Cuomo, who is universally believed to be interested in running for governor, said yesterday at the state Democrats' meeting in Rye, “The Democratic Party is essentially a party of primaries.”
At an event in Manhattan this morning, David Paterson was asked about Cuomo’s remarks, and said, “I wouldn’t say that I welcome a primary–it’s a lot of work.”
Paterson added, “But nor would I say that is anything necessarily right or wrong. All I would say is that I will be running for governor, and when you’ve made that decision then you have to assess that you’ve made that decision in the face of all possibilities.”
At separate times, Cuomo and Paterson attended the meeting this weekend.
Also, one person brought to my attention the fact that the sign Cuomo had hanging behind him during his breakfast speech read, “Andrew Cuomo 2010,” but did not specify which office he was seeking.
By contrast, David Paterson’s signs, actually had the word “governor” on them.
UPDATE: Kirsten Gillibrand didn’t say much about the benefits of primaries. When asked about it today by Jimmy Vielkind, Gillibrand said, “Of course we have the best democracy in the world, we have a vibrant Democratic party here in New York, and I support what we do here. But I’m going to leave the political commentating to you, because you are a political commentator.”
