NY Governor Paterson will run despite White House concern

New York Governor David Paterson said on Sunday that he will run for election to secure his seat despite the White House urging him to drop out of the race.

According to a New York Times report released on Sunday, the White House has urged Gov. Paterson to withdraw from the race. However, the White House has denied such accusations that President Barack Obama sent a formal request to Paterson. Nevertheless Paterson told reporters on Sunday, according to CNN, "I am running for office. I'm not going to discuss confidential conversations." The New York Times cited two senior administration officials and a New York Democrat who have primary knowledge of the situation. The report stated, that the President's "political team and other party leaders have grown increasingly worried that the governor's unpopularity could drag down Democratic members of Congress in New York, as well as the Democratic-controlled Legislature, in next fall's election." The Times also said that this story is a very delicate situation because Paterson is only one of two African-American governors, the other being Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick. A Huliq News article shows Paterson with a 20 per cent approval rating, 24 per cent of Democrats feel he is doing a good job and 70 per cent of voters think he is not a viable candidate for 2010.