For former State Sen. Nick Spano (R-Westchester), the new year may be a good year to run again.

But Spano said his decision to challenge Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D), who unseated him in 2006, will depend on the residents of Westchester County.

Having former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani as the Republican presidential nominee wouldn’t hurt either.

“I do miss the action,” said Spano, who has recently set up a website to gauge public support for his candidacy. “I do miss the competition. And I do miss making things happen.”

But if Giuliani does not get the GOP presidential nomination, then Spano may not even seek the nomination for his old State Senate seat. Westchester Republicans, meanwhile, seem hesitant to start considering other potential contenders until Spano has made his decision.

The seat is being closely watched by the state GOP, for which the prime concern is maintaining the slim Senate majority. A high-profile and recognizable candidate to oppose Stewart-Cousins may mean the difference between a Republican and Democratic State Senate.

Spano said all of his former colleagues in the Senate are encouraging him to run.

“But at the same time, this is not about me,” said Spano, who now works for Prudential Rand, a residential and commercial real estate agency based in White Plains. He also runs consulting firm Empire Strategic Planning. “This is about the people of Westchester. And that sounds like political rhetoric, but it’s truly a reality.”

Sen. Tom Libous (R-Tioga/Broome/ Chenango), who is one of four regional campaign chairs of the New York State Republican Campaign Committee, said that when looking for potential candidates, all avenues are being explored.

“We’re taking a full approach at looking at how to win that seat back,” Libous said. “It might be with Spano, it might be someone else.”

A Stewart-Cousins/Spano match-up would be nothing new to the people of Westchester.

In 2004, Spano defeated her by only 18 votes in a race that went through two recounts. Two years later, riding the Democratic tide that swept Gov. Eliot Spitzer and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo into office, Stewart-Cousins defeated Spano by nearly 1,800 votes.

The district is overwhelmingly Democratic, with 217,091 registered, compared with 137,206 Republicans.

But while Spano mulls his prospects, state GOP operatives are being tight lipped about other potential candidates.

“We don’t want to give away the playbook quite yet,” said Matthew Watler, director of communications for the New York Republican State Committee.

Rob Astorino, a Republican who lost a bid for Westchester County Executive in 2005, said everyone is waiting for Spano’s decision.

“I think he’ll make up his mind probably in February,” said Astorino, who now hosts a show for Sirius Satellite Radio. “I think he’s probably waiting to see who runs the Republican ticket for president, which I think will have a big factor in that race.”

Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno (R-Rennselaer) has himself expressed interest in Spano running again, telling reporters recently that the former senator is a “winner.”

Despite a lack of a candidate, Republicans are already trying to paint Stewart-Cousins as an absentee senator who makes only infrequent appearances in her district.
Republican attacks notwithstanding, Stewart-Cousins is vulnerable as a first-term senator, said Jeff Binder, a consultant for the Westchester-based Strategic Political Group.

“If you’re going to retake a seat,” Binder said, “the scenario would be after that first term, or you’ll have to wait a very long time because incumbents get entrenched.”
The district’s unique demographics also make the seat a difficult one for Republicans to retake, Binder said.

“Nick Spano for years was able to capitalize on the fact that there were a lot of Democrats who cross over and behave like Republicans and vote for the Republican candidate,” Binder explained. “But that’s becoming less and less.” 

Stewart-Cousins, for one, is unconcerned with whom she might face in 2008. She said she relishes the opportunity to get out and campaign in her district, where she said people are less concerned with Republican rhetoric and more concerned with results.

“When you do your job then people want you to keep your job,” she said. “When you keep your job, it’s generally because you’re doing your job.”

She said she will leave the question of her candidacy up to the voters. “My constituents are ultimately the judges of whether or not I am effective, or whether or not I am the senator that they want,” she said.

Stewart-Cousins said her strategy is very simple: “I just have to win.”