Surprise! Spitzer is Running for N.Y. Governor

Crusading New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer is running for the state’s governorship in 2006, according to an announcement posted at his Web site today.

Spitzer, a Democrat who has upended the insurance industry with his allegations of bid rigging in a lawsuit filed against the world’s No. 1 broker Marsh & McLennan Cos., will attempt to capture the Democratic nomination and unseat three-term Republican Gov. George Pataki.

“The state is facing a crisis,” Spitzer said in the statement. “I want to fix what’s broken. It’s what I do best. I bring people together whether they like it or not and we tackle complex problems — not with band-aid solutions, but with major reform and real change. We did it in the financial industry and other sectors and we can do it in government. I’ll bring new energy and resolve to the task of transforming state government and turning around the state economy.”

The road was cleared for Spitzer in a potential Democratic primary thanks to U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer’s announcement that he would reman in Washington, D.C., and not run for governor himself. Since then, Spitzer has publicly commended Schumer for his decision and congratulated the senior senator from New York on his appointment to two influential positions.

Spitzer has been widely criticized within the financial services industry as a headline-chaser unwilling to prove his allegations in a court of law.