A stop in Watertown: Astorino launches 2nd bid for governor

WATERTOWN, N.Y. (WWNY) - Republican Rob Astorino stopped in Watertown Tuesday as part of a statewide tour to announce his candidacy for governor.

“I ran in 2014,” Astorino said. “We gave Cuomo the closest race he’s had in seven statewide races.”

It might have been the closest but it was still a double-digit loss. The former Westchester County executive lost to Cuomo in 2014 by a 14-point margin.

Astorino says the issues he was talking about seven years ago are as relevant now as then.

“The corruption’s gotten worse, the state has gotten worse, the taxes have gotten higher, jobs have dissipated, and people are leaving New York in record numbers and we don’t have to put up with that,” he said.

Astorino also highlighted Cuomo’s recent controversies.

“We know the scandals, the sexual harassment claims, the nursing home scandal is atrocious,” he said.

Astorino is one of several Republicans eyeing the Executive Mansion in Albany.

Last month Representative Lee Zeldin of Long Island threw his hat in the ring.

“I think we’ve got great Republican candidates,” Astorino said.

Another name on the list that we’ve covered is Lewis County Sheriff Mike Carpinelli, who launched his campaign last year.

“I think the sheriff is a good qualified candidate,” Astorino said. “I think again we’ve got good choices. Any one of us would be 100 times better than the status quo of another Andrew Cuomo or whatever Democrat gets off the merry-go-round and tries to double down on these bad policies.”

Unsurprisingly, Astorino says he is the best candidate for job.

“I think we have a great opportunity to win and I did it in Westchester in a Democratic county and I’m ready to do it here in a Democratic state,” he said.

Cuomo is in his third term and while he is embattled with a number of political scandals at the moment, he has handily defeated all Republican candidates he has faced in a gubernatorial race.

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